bet9ja.com
Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India
bet9ja.com
Published
bit.ly
5 February 2016

Share

close panel

Share page

Copy link

About sharing

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 home situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is enjoying the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his mobile phone glued to his best hand.

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

Five minutes previously 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 informs his bookmaker on the phone.

And a few minutes later on his forecast comes to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

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

For more than 3 decades he's been banking on cricket matches. We can't reveal his name as what he's doing is illegal in India.

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

'Black cash'

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 sports betting cash is directed towards cricket.

With no legal avenue, punters place bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bet on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest individual run scorer.

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

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

And offshore wagering companies are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have actually signed up accounts with offshore companies.

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

But regardless of this, it is "offline gaming", done through phone calls which dominate the market.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, saying it would help clamp down on corruption in the nation'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 sports betting scandal emerged.

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

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

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

"I don't mind paying some cash out my earnings, as long as I can gamble publicly," states our cricket gambler.

It would also open a huge organization chance for certified bookies and international online sports betting companies to set up operations in India.

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

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

But lots of likewise think, that the taxes levied on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be affordable to make it appealing enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting because (some) individuals wouldn't desire to leave an audit path by going into the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He includes that people who use unaccounted cash to position huge bets will never gamble legally.

Approval question

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to create a brand-new law, and politically this will be a tough concept to sell.

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

And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting in their territory.
bet9ja.com
"The process is so long and tricky that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime soon."

Yet with the idea having been backed by an official panel for the first time, a minimum of a debate has actually fired up around a subject - which previously was thought about a taboo.
bet9ja.com