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 go to win versus Australia.

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

He has made more than 10 contact the last 30 minutes - not to discuss the match but to keep revising his bet.

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

"I think India is winning, make the modification," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.

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

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

For more than 3 years he's been sports betting on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is prohibited in India.

Besides horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, illegal sports betting distributes grow in the nation.

'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 sports betting money is directed towards cricket.

Without any legal avenue, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bet 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 declared to the taxman.

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

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

"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is uncertain for online sports betting," states Mumbai- based legal representative HP Ranina.

But regardless of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through call which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise sports betting in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would assist clamp down on corruption in the nation's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest 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 actually been banned for two years after some gamers and group authorities were found guilty of repairing parts of the match at the request of bookmakers.

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

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

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

It would also open a substantial service opportunity for licensed bookmakers and international online wagering companies to set up operations in India.

And it would assist limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by assisting make deals involved in sports betting more transparent.

"If you work together with sports betting business, you will have an extremely effective method of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.

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

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be unlawful wagering since (some) people wouldn't want to leave an audit path by getting in the white market," states Mr Oborne.

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

Approval question

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

"Although lots of people are involved in some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable concern for lots of," states 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 gambling in their area.

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

Yet with the idea having actually been backed by a main panel for the very first time, at least a dispute has actually ignited around a subject - which until now was considered a taboo.