Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India

5 February 2016

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 guy is seeing the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his mobile phone glued to his best hand.

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

Five minutes previously his money was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman gets all set to deal with the last over he's changed his mind.

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

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

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

For more than three years he's been wagering on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is illegal in India.
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Besides horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, unlawful wagering syndicates thrive in the country.

'Black cash'

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

Without any legal opportunity, punters place bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest specific run scorer.

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

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

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

"Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is uncertain for online gaming," says Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But despite this, it is "offline sports betting", done through phone calls which control the market.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel selected by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating it would assist secure down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest 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 sports betting scandal emerged.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and team authorities were found guilty of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookmakers.

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

Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the ideal direction.

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

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

And it would assist restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by assisting make transactions associated with sports betting more transparent.
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"If you work together with wagering companies, you will have an extremely efficient approach of stamping out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting website, India Bet.

But lots of also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be sensible to make it appealing enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are constraints.

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

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

Approval question

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

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

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

Yet with the concept having been backed by a main panel for the first time, at least an argument has fired up around a topic - which previously was considered a taboo.
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