For Sports Gambling To Be Legalised

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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India
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5 February 2016


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By Sameer Hashmi


Mumbai Business reporter


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


In his two-bedroom home located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged male is seeing 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 made more than 10 employ the last thirty minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep modifying his bet.


Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman prepares to deal with the last over he's changed his mind.
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"I believe India is winning, make the change," he informs his bookie on the phone.


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


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


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


Aside from horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not permitted in India. Despite that, illegal wagering syndicates thrive in the country.


'Black cash'


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


With no legal avenue, put bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest specific run scorer.


Most of these transactions include so-called "black cash", which is cash not stated to the taxman.


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


And offshore wagering business are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have signed up accounts with overseas companies.


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


But regardless of this, it is "offline gambling", done through telephone call which dominate the market.


Require legalisation


The clamour to legalise wagering 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 nation's favourite sport.


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


Two franchises have been prohibited for two years after some gamers and team authorities were condemned of fixing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.


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


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


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


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


And it would help limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make deals associated with gambling more transparent.


"If you work along with sports betting business, you will have a really efficient approach of marking out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.


But many also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will have to be affordable to make it appealing enough for them to gamble lawfully.


However, there are constraints.


"Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting because (some) people would not wish to leave an audit trail by entering the white market," says Mr Oborne.


He adds that people who utilize unaccounted money to place huge bets will never gamble legally.


Approval question


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


"Although lots of people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial problem for many," states our unnamed punter.


And provided that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting gambling in their area.


"The process is so long and challenging that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this coming true anytime quickly."


Yet with the concept having been backed by an official panel for the very first time, at least a debate has actually fired up around a subject - which up until now was thought about a taboo.