Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published

5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business press reporter

It is the last over of the cricket match, with India requiring 17 runs to win against Australia.

In his two-bedroom home situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged male is viewing the video game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his cellphone glued to his right hand.

He has made more than 10 contact the last 30 minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his money was on Australia, however now as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to deal with the last over he's changed his mind.

"I believe India is winning, make the modification," he informs his bookmaker on the phone.

And a couple of minutes later on his prediction comes to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

"I have actually made $200 today," he states with a childlike glee.

For more than three years he's been sports betting on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is prohibited in India.

Other than horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, prohibited wagering syndicates prosper in the country.

'Black money'

According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's unlawful sports betting market deserves some $150bn a year. And much of that sports betting money is directed towards cricket.

With no legal opportunity, punters place bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bet on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest individual run scorer.

Most of these deals involve so-called "black money", which is money not stated to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law forbiding internet sports betting, there is absolutely nothing similar here.

And offshore sports betting business are using this loophole to tempt Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have signed up accounts with offshore firms.

"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is unclear for online sports betting," says Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But regardless of this, it is "offline gaming", done through phone calls which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has actually grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, saying it would help clamp down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established to recommend modifications in the performance of India's cricket regulative body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League sports betting scandal came to light.

Two franchises have been banned for 2 years after some gamers and team authorities were found guilty of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised sports betting will bring in tax profits for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.

Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting is a relocation in the right instructions.

"I don't mind paying some money out my earnings, as long as I can bet openly," states our cricket bettor.

It would also open a substantial organization chance for certified bookies and international online sports betting business to set up operations in India.

And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by helping make transactions associated with gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside sports betting business, you will have an extremely reliable approach of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.

But numerous likewise believe, that the taxes levied on the gambler and the bookmaker will need to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be unlawful sports betting due to the fact that (some) people would not want to leave an audit trail by going into the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He includes that individuals who utilize unaccounted cash to position huge bets will never ever bet lawfully.

Approval concern

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to create a brand-new law, and politically this will be a difficult idea to sell.

"Even however many individuals are associated with some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable problem for numerous," states our unnamed punter.

And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to also pass a separate law to legalise sports betting gambling in their area.

"The procedure is so long and tricky that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this becoming a reality anytime soon."

Yet with the idea having been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, at least a debate has fired up around a subject - which until now was thought about a taboo.