For Sports Gambling To Be Legalised

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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 needing 17 go to win against Australia.


In his two-bedroom home located in central Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is seeing the game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his mobile phone glued to his right-hand man.


He has made more than 10 calls in the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match however to keep revising his bet.


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


"I think India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookie on the phone.


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


"I have actually made $200 today," he states with a childish 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 illegal in India.
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Other than horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed in India. Despite that, illegal wagering syndicates prosper in the nation.


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


With no legal opportunity, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest specific run scorer.


Most of these deals include so-called "black money", which is cash 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 gaming, there is nothing similar here.


And overseas sports betting business are using this loophole to entice Indians. Although there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually signed up accounts with overseas companies.


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


But in spite of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through telephone call which dominate the market.


Require legalisation


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


The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest modifications in the functioning 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 group authorities were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.


The panel likewise argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax revenues for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.


Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a relocation in the right direction.


"I don't mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can bet openly," says our cricket gambler.


It would likewise open a huge business opportunity for certified bookmakers and international online business to establish operations in India.


And it would help limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by assisting make transactions associated with sports betting more transparent.
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"If you work alongside sports betting companies, you will have an extremely reliable method of stamping out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.


But lots of likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be reasonable to make it appealing enough for them to gamble legally.
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However, there are limitations.


"Definitely there will be illegal sports betting since (some) people wouldn't want to leave an audit path by entering the white market," states Mr Oborne.


He adds that people who utilize unaccounted money to put huge bets will never bet lawfully.


Approval question


For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to develop a new law, and politically this will be a hard idea to sell.


"Despite the fact that lots of people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable problem for numerous," says our unnamed punter.


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


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


Yet with the idea having actually been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of a dispute has sparked around a subject - which till now was considered a taboo.