Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India

Published

5 February 2016

Share

close panel

Share page

Copy link

About sharing

By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business reporter

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

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

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

Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares to face the last over he's changed his mind.

"I believe India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.

And a few minutes later on his forecast becomes a reality, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.

"I have actually made $200 today," he says with a childish glee.

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

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

'Black money'

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

Without any legal opportunity, punters position bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest individual run scorer.

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of gambling in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting web sports betting, there is nothing comparable here.

And offshore wagering companies are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Even though there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have registered accounts with offshore companies.

"Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is unclear for online gaming," says Mumbai- based attorney HP Ranina.

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

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise sports betting in cricket has actually grown after a panel selected by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would help clamp down on corruption in the country's favourite sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest changes in the functioning of India's cricket regulative body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League wagering scandal emerged.

Two franchises have been banned for 2 years after some players and team officials were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the request of bookies.

The panel likewise argues that legalised wagering will generate tax earnings for the exchequer that might amount to $2bn a year.

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a move in the ideal instructions.

"I do not mind paying some cash out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly," states our cricket bettor.

It would likewise open a huge business opportunity for certified bookies and international online wagering business to set up operations in India.

And it would assist restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by assisting make transactions included in gambling more transparent.

"If you work along with sports betting business, you will have a very efficient technique of marking out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.

But lots of also believe, that the taxes levied on the gambler and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to bet legally.

However, there are limitations.

"Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting because (some) people wouldn't wish to leave an audit trail by getting in the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He includes that people who utilize unaccounted money to place big bets will never ever gamble lawfully.

Approval question

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

"Although numerous individuals are associated with some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial concern for many," says our unnamed punter.

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

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

Yet with the idea having been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, a minimum of a debate has ignited around a subject - which previously was considered a taboo.