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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India
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Published

5 February 2016

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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 home situated in central Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing the game, nervously. He's resting 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 30 minutes - not to talk about the match however to keep revising his bet.

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

"I believe India is winning, make the change," he informs his bookie on the phone.

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

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

Aside from horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed in India. Despite that, prohibited wagering distributes prosper in the nation.

'Black cash'

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 money is directed towards cricket.

With no legal opportunity, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest private run scorer.

Most of these transactions involve so-called "black cash", which is cash not stated 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 prohibiting web gaming, there is nothing comparable here.

And offshore sports betting companies are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online based out of India, a lot individuals have registered accounts with overseas companies.

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

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

Calls for legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest modifications 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 emerged.

Two franchises have been prohibited for 2 years after some players and team authorities were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the request of bookies.

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

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

"I don't mind paying some cash out my earnings, as long as I can gamble publicly," says our cricket bettor.

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

And it would help restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue numerous, by helping make deals included in gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have an extremely reliable method of marking out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.

But numerous also think, that the taxes levied on the gambler and the bookie will have to be reasonable to make it appealing enough for them to gamble legally.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be unlawful wagering due to the fact that (some) individuals wouldn't want to leave an audit path by getting in the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He includes that people who use unaccounted money to put big bets will never ever gamble legally.

Approval concern

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

"Even however many individuals are included in some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable issue for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And offered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their area.
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"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this coming true 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 sparked around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.