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 house located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is enjoying the video game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his mobile phone glued to his right hand.

He has actually made more than 10 hire the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match however to keep revising his bet.

Five minutes earlier his money was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman gets ready to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.

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

And a couple of minutes later his forecast 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 three years he's been sports betting 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 in India. Despite that, prohibited sports betting syndicates grow in the nation.

'Black money'

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 gambling cash is directed towards cricket.

With no legal avenue, punters place 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 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 type of gaming in India, however unlike in the US which has a law restricting web gambling, there is nothing comparable here.

And overseas sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to tempt Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have actually registered accounts with offshore firms.

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

But despite this, it is "offline gaming", done through phone calls which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has grown after a panel appointed 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 established to recommend 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 two years after some players and group officials were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

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

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a relocation in the right instructions.

"I do not mind paying some money out my revenues, as long as I can bet openly," says our cricket bettor.

It would also open a substantial business chance for licensed bookmakers and worldwide online sports betting companies to set up operations in India.

And it would help limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by assisting make deals associated with gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering business, you will have a very 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 bookmaker will have to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be prohibited wagering due to the fact that (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit path by going into the white market," states Mr Oborne.

He adds that people who use unaccounted money to position big bets will never gamble lawfully.

Approval question

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to create a new law, and politically this will be a tough concept to sell.

"Although lots of people are included in some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial problem for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And given 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 difficult that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this ending up being a truth anytime soon."

Yet with the idea having actually been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, at least a debate has actually sparked around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.