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 requiring 17 go to win versus Australia.

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

He has made more than 10 contact the last thirty minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his money was on Australia, today as the Indian batsman prepares to face the last over he's changed his mind.

"I believe India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.

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

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

Other than horse racing, of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, illegal wagering distributes flourish in the country.

'Black cash'

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

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

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

And overseas wagering business are utilizing this loophole to tempt Indians. Even though there are no online wagering 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 uncertain for online sports betting," states Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But in spite of 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 actually grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, stating 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 came to light.
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Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and team officials were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

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

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

"I do not mind paying some cash out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly," states our cricket gambler.

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

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

"If you work together with sports betting companies, you will have an extremely efficient approach of stamping out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.
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But many also believe, that the taxes levied on the gambler and the bookie will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

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

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted cash to position big bets will never bet legally.

Approval question

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to develop a brand-new law, and politically this will be a difficult idea to offer.

"Even however many individuals are included in some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial concern for many," states 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 territory.
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"The procedure is so long and tricky that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this coming true anytime quickly."

Yet with the idea having actually been backed by a main panel for the first time, a minimum of a debate has fired up around a topic - which previously was considered a taboo.
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