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 press reporter

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

In his two-bedroom home situated in central Mumbai, a middle-aged male is enjoying the game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his mobile phone glued to his right-hand man.

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

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

"I believe India is winning, make the modification," he informs his bookmaker 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 states with a childlike glee.

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

Aside from horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, unlawful sports betting syndicates thrive in the country.

'Black money'

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

With no legal opportunity, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest individual run scorer.

The majority of these transactions involve so-called "black money", which is money not stated to the taxman.

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

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

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

But regardless of this, it is "offline gambling", done through telephone call which control the market.

Calls for legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established to recommend 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 came to light.

Two franchises have been banned for 2 years after some players and group officials were condemned of fixing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised sports betting will generate tax earnings for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.

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

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

It would also open a huge company chance for licensed bookmakers and international online sports betting business to set up operations in India.

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

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

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

However, there are limitations.

"Definitely there will be prohibited wagering because (some) individuals would not want to leave an audit path by going into the white market," states Mr Oborne.

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

Approval question

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to create a new law, and politically this will be a difficult concept to sell.

"Despite the fact that numerous people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable problem for many," says our unnamed punter.

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

"The procedure is so long and challenging that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this ending up being a reality anytime soon."

Yet with the concept having been backed by an official panel for the first time, a minimum of an argument has fired up around a topic - which up until now was considered a taboo.