Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published

5 February 2016

Share

close panel

Share page
bet9ja.com
Copy link

About sharing

By Sameer Hashmi

press 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 main Mumbai, a middle-aged guy 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.
bet9ja.com
He has made more than 10 hire the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match but to keep revising his bet.

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

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

And a couple of minutes later on his prediction becomes a reality, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

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

For more than 3 years 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 of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, prohibited wagering distributes thrive in the nation.

'Black money'

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

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

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law restricting web gambling, there is nothing similar here.
bit.ly
And overseas wagering business are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot individuals have registered accounts with offshore companies.

"Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online gambling," states Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But regardless of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through call which control the marketplace.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise sports betting in cricket has actually grown after a panel selected by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, saying it would help secure down on corruption in the nation's favourite sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established to recommend 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.
bet9ja.com
Two franchises have been prohibited for two years after some gamers and group authorities were discovered guilty of repairing parts of the match at the request of bookies.

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

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a move in the right direction.
bet9ja.com
"I don't mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket gambler.
bet9ja.com
It would also open a big company opportunity for licensed bookmakers and worldwide online sports betting business to establish operations in India.

And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by assisting make deals involved in gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside sports betting business, you will have a really efficient approach of marking out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

But numerous also believe, that the taxes levied on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be sensible to make it appealing enough for them to bet legally.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be unlawful sports betting because (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit trail by getting in the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He adds that people who use unaccounted money to position huge bets will never gamble legally.

Approval concern

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to produce a brand-new law, and politically this will be a hard concept to offer.

"Although lots of people are included in some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable concern for lots of," says our unnamed punter.

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

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

Yet with the idea having been endorsed by an official panel for the very first time, at least a debate has sparked around a subject - which previously was considered a taboo.