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 press reporter

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

In his two-bedroom home located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is viewing the game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his cellphone glued to his right-hand man.

He has actually made more than 10 calls in the last 30 minutes - not to discuss the match but to keep modifying his bet.

Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.
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"I believe India is winning, make the modification," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.
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And a couple of minutes later his forecast comes real, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.

"I have made $200 today," he says 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 illegal in India.

Besides horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, unlawful sports betting syndicates prosper in the nation.

'Black cash'

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 gambling money is directed towards cricket.

With no legal opportunity, punters position 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 greatest individual run scorer.

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

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

And offshore sports betting companies are using this loophole to entice Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually registered accounts with offshore companies.

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

But regardless of this, it is "offline gaming", done through call which dominate the marketplace.
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Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, saying it would help clamp down on corruption in the country's favourite sport.

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

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

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 that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the right direction.

"I do not mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can bet publicly," says our cricket bettor.

It would also open a big business opportunity for certified bookies and global online wagering business to set up operations in India.

And it would assist limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by helping make transactions associated with sports betting more transparent.

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

But many likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookie will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are constraints.
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"Definitely there will be illegal wagering because (some) people would not desire to leave an audit trail by entering the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He includes that people who utilize unaccounted cash to position big bets will never gamble lawfully.

Approval concern

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to produce a new law, and politically this will be a tough idea to offer.
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"Even though lots of people are associated with some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial issue for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

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

"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative 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 ignited around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.