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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering 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 runs to win versus Australia.

In his two-bedroom house situated in central Mumbai, a middle-aged male is enjoying the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his cellphone glued to his right-hand man.

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

Five minutes earlier his money 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 informs his bookmaker on the phone.

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

"I have actually made $200 today," he says with a childlike glee.
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For more than 3 years 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 of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, prohibited wagering distributes thrive in the country.

'Black money'

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

Without any legal avenue, punters put 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 highest specific run scorer.

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

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

And offshore wagering business are utilizing this loophole to tempt Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually registered accounts with offshore firms.

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

But in spite of this, it is "offline gambling", done through call which control the market.

Calls for 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 help clamp down on corruption in the nation's favourite sport.

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

Two have actually been banned for two years after some gamers and team authorities were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the request of bookmakers.

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

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the ideal instructions.
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"I don't mind paying some money out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket gambler.

It would also open a huge organization chance for certified bookies and worldwide online wagering business to set up operations in India.

And it would help limit match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make transactions associated with gambling more transparent.

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

But numerous also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are limitations.

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

He adds that individuals who use unaccounted cash to position huge bets will never ever gamble legally.

Approval question

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to produce a new law, and politically this will be a tough concept to offer.

"Although many individuals are involved in some sort of sports betting - it's still a questionable problem for lots of," states our unnamed punter.
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And provided that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their area.

"The procedure is so long and challenging that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this ending up being a truth anytime quickly."

Yet with the idea having actually been backed by a main panel for the very first time, a minimum of a debate has actually fired up around a topic - which till now was considered a taboo.
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