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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 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 main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing the video game, nervously. He’s resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his cellphone glued to his right-hand man.

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

Five minutes earlier his money was on Australia, but now as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to face the last over he’s changed his mind.

“I believe India is winning, make the modification,” he tells his bookmaker on the phone.

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

“I have actually made $200 today,” he says with a childish glee.

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

Aside from horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not permitted in India. Despite that, prohibited wagering syndicates flourish in the country.

‘Black cash’

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

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

Most of these transactions 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 prohibiting internet sports betting, there is nothing comparable here.

And offshore sports betting companies are using this loophole to lure Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have registered accounts with offshore companies.

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

But in spite of this, it is “offline gambling”, done through phone calls which dominate the market.

Require legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest changes 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.
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Two franchises have actually been banned for two years after some gamers and team officials were found guilty of parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

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

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

“I don’t mind paying some money out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly,” says our cricket gambler.

It would likewise open a substantial organization opportunity for certified bookies and worldwide online sports betting business to set up operations in India.

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

“If you work along with wagering companies, you will have an extremely reliable technique of marking out match fixing,” says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

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

However, there are constraints.

“Definitely there will be unlawful wagering due to the fact that (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit trail by getting in the white market,” says Mr Oborne.

He includes that individuals who utilize unaccounted cash to put huge bets will never ever bet legally.

Approval question

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

“Although lots of people are associated with some sort of sports betting - it’s still a controversial issue for numerous,” says our unnamed punter.

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

“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 been endorsed by a main panel for the first time, a minimum of a debate has actually sparked around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.
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