bit.ly
Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published
bit.ly
5 February 2016

Share
bet9ja.com
close panel

Share page

Copy link

About sharing

By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business reporter

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

In his two-bedroom house located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is watching the game, nervously. He’s resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his to his best hand.

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

Five minutes earlier his money was on Australia, but now as the Indian batsman gets prepared to deal with the last over he’s changed his mind.

“I think India is winning, make the modification,” he informs his bookie on the phone.

And a couple of minutes later his prediction becomes a reality, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.
bet9ja.com
“I have actually made $200 today,” he states 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 illegal in India.

Besides horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not enabled in India. Despite that, prohibited wagering distributes flourish in the nation.

‘Black cash’

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

Without any legal avenue, 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 highest specific run scorer.

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of sports betting in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting web sports betting, there is nothing similar here.

And overseas 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 registered accounts with overseas firms.

“Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online gaming,” states Mumbai- based legal representative HP Ranina.

But in spite of this, it is “offline gambling”, done through call which control the market.

Calls for legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to recommend 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 actually been prohibited for two years after some gamers and group authorities were condemned of fixing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised wagering will generate tax earnings for the exchequer that could amount to $2bn a year.

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

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

It would also open a big organization chance for certified bookmakers and global online wagering companies to set up operations in India.

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

“If you work alongside wagering business, you will have a very efficient 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 bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are constraints.

“Definitely there will be prohibited sports betting due to the fact that (some) people wouldn’t wish to leave an audit trail by entering the white market,” states Mr Oborne.

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted cash to place big bets will never ever bet lawfully.

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 tough idea to offer.

“Despite the fact that lots of people are involved in some sort of sports betting - it’s still a controversial concern for lots of,” states our unnamed punter.
bet9ja.com
And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting in their area.

“The procedure is so long and challenging that it will take years,” states Mr Ranina.“That’s why, we are negative about this becoming a reality anytime quickly.”

Yet with the concept having been backed by a main panel for the very first time, a minimum of a dispute has actually ignited around a subject - which up until now was thought about a taboo.
bet9ja.com