Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India

Published

5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business press reporter

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

In his two-bedroom home located in central Mumbai, a middle-aged man is watching the video game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his ideal hand.

He has actually made more than 10 calls in the last thirty minutes - not to talk about the match however to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes previously his money was on Australia, but 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 bookie on the phone.

And a few minutes later his prediction 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 reveal his name as what he's doing is unlawful in India.

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

'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.

Without any legal opportunity, punters place bets using 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.

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

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law restricting web gambling, there is nothing comparable here.

And offshore wagering business are using this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually signed up accounts with offshore firms.

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

But regardless of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through telephone call which dominate 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, stating it would help secure down on corruption in the nation's favourite 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 wagering scandal came to light.

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

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

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

"I do not mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket gambler.

It would likewise open a big business opportunity for licensed bookmakers and worldwide online wagering business to set up operations in India.

And it would help limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make deals included in sports betting more transparent.

"If you work along with sports betting companies, you will have an extremely efficient approach of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.

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

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be unlawful sports betting due to the fact that (some) individuals wouldn't want to leave an audit trail by entering the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He adds that individuals who use unaccounted money to position huge bets will never ever bet legally.

Approval question

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to develop a new law, and politically this will be a hard idea to sell.

"Despite the fact that many individuals are involved in some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial problem for many," states 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 gambling in their area.

"The procedure is so long and tricky that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this becoming a reality anytime soon."

Yet with the concept having been backed by a main panel for the very first time, at least a debate has sparked around a subject - which until now was considered a taboo.