Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India
5 February 2016
By Sameer Hashmi
Mumbai Business press reporter
It is the last over of the cricket match, with India needing 17 go to win against Australia.
In his two-bedroom home situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing the game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his right hand.
He has actually made more than 10 employ the last 30 minutes - not to discuss the match however to keep modifying his bet.
Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, and now as the Indian batsman gets prepared to face the last over he's changed his mind.
"I think India is winning, make the modification," he tells his bookie on the phone.
And a couple of minutes later his prediction becomes a reality, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.
"I have actually made $200 today," he says with a childlike glee.
For more than three years he's been sports betting on cricket matches. We can't reveal his name as what he's doing is prohibited in India.
Aside from horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not permitted in India. Despite that, prohibited sports betting distributes thrive in the country.
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'Black cash'
According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's prohibited sports betting market is worth some $150bn a year. And much of that sports betting money is directed towards cricket.
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With no legal avenue, punters place bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bank on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest individual run scorer.
The majority of these deals involve so-called "black cash", which is cash not declared to the taxman.
The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of sports betting in India, however unlike in the US which has a law forbiding internet sports betting, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.
And overseas wagering companies are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have actually registered accounts with offshore firms.
"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online gambling," says Mumbai- based legal representative HP Ranina.
But in spite of this, it is "offline gambling", done through telephone call which dominate the market.
Require legalisation
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The clamour to legalise sports betting in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, saying it would assist clamp down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.
The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to 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 emerged.
Two franchises have been banned for 2 years after some gamers and group officials were discovered guilty of fixing parts of the match at the request of bookmakers.
The panel also argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax profits for the exchequer that might total up to $2bn a year.
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Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the ideal instructions.
"I do not mind paying some cash out my earnings, as long as I can bet openly," states our cricket gambler.
It would likewise open a substantial company chance for licensed bookmakers and international online wagering business to set up operations in India.
And it would help restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make deals included in sports betting more transparent.
"If you work along with sports betting companies, you will have a really effective approach of stamping out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.
But lots of also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookie will have to be affordable to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.
However, there are restrictions.
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"Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting due to the fact that (some) people wouldn't wish to leave an audit path by going into the white market," says Mr Oborne.
He adds that people who utilize unaccounted money to position huge bets will never ever bet lawfully.
Approval question
For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to develop a brand-new law, and politically this will be a tough idea to sell.
"Even however lots of people are included in some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial problem for numerous," says our unnamed punter.
And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their territory.
"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime soon."
Yet with the idea having actually been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of a dispute has actually sparked around a topic - which up until now was considered a taboo.
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For Sports Gambling to Be Legalised
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