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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India

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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 guy is viewing the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his ideal hand.

He has actually made more than 10 contact the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match but to keep revising his bet.

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

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

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

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

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

Other than horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not permitted in India. Despite that, prohibited wagering distributes flourish in the nation.

'Black money'

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

With no legal avenue, punters position bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bet on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest private run scorer.

Most of these deals include so-called "black money", which is cash not declared to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of gaming in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting web sports betting, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.
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And offshore sports betting companies are using this loophole to entice Indians. Although there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have signed up accounts with offshore firms.

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

But despite this, it is "offline sports betting", done through telephone call which dominate the marketplace.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would assist secure down on corruption in the country's favourite sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest 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 emerged.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and group authorities were discovered guilty of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

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

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

"I don't mind paying some cash out my profits, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket bettor.

It would also open a big organization chance for licensed bookmakers and international online sports betting business to set up operations in India.

And it would help restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by helping make deals included in gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have a really efficient method of marking out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

But lots of also think, that the taxes levied on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.

However, there are restrictions.
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"Definitely there will be unlawful wagering since (some) individuals would not desire to leave an audit trail by getting in the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted money to position huge bets will never bet legally.

Approval concern

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

"Even however many people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial issue for many," says our unnamed punter.

And given that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting gambling in their territory.
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"The process is so long and tricky that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this ending up being a reality anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having actually been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of a has sparked around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.