For Sports Gambling to Be Legalised
Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India
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5 February 2016
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By Sameer Hashmi
bet9ja.com
Mumbai Business press reporter
It is the last over of the cricket match, with India requiring 17 go to win against Australia.
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In his two-bedroom home situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is seeing the video game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his sofa with his mobile phone glued to his right-hand man.
He has made more than 10 employ the last 30 minutes - not to go over the match however to keep revising his bet.
Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman gets prepared to face the last over he's altered his mind.
"I think India is winning, make the modification," he informs his bookie on the phone.
And a few minutes later on his prediction comes to life, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.
"I have made $200 today," he states with a childlike glee.
For more than 3 decades he's been sports betting on cricket matches. We can't expose his name as what he's doing is prohibited in India.
Other than horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, prohibited sports betting distributes prosper in the nation.
'Black money'
According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's illegal sports betting wagering market is worth some $150bn a year. And much of that sports betting money is directed towards cricket.
Without any legal opportunity, punters put bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest specific run scorer.
The majority of these transactions involve so-called "black cash", which is money not stated to the taxman.
The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of sports betting in India, but unlike in the US which has a law prohibiting internet gambling, there is nothing comparable here.
And offshore wagering companies are using this loophole to lure Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have signed up accounts with overseas companies.
"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online gambling," states Mumbai- based attorney HP Ranina.
But in spite of this, it is "offline gambling", done through phone calls which dominate the marketplace.
Require legalisation
The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has 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 preferred sport.
The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up 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.
Two franchises have been banned for 2 years after some players and group officials were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the request of bookies.
The panel also argues that legalised wagering will generate tax revenues for the exchequer that might amount to $2bn a year.
Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a move in the right instructions.
"I don't mind paying some cash out my earnings, as long as I can bet openly," states our cricket gambler.
It would also open a substantial company opportunity for licensed bookies and global online wagering companies to establish operations in India.
And it would help restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make deals associated with gambling more transparent.
"If you work along with wagering companies, you will have a very effective technique of stamping out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.
But lots of likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookie will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.
However, there are constraints.
"Definitely there will be illegal sports betting since (some) people wouldn't desire to leave an audit path by entering the white market," states Mr Oborne.
He adds that people who use unaccounted money to place big bets will never gamble lawfully.
Approval question
For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to create a new law, and politically this will be a difficult idea to offer.
"Although lots of people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial concern for numerous," says our unnamed punter.
And offered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting in their area.
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"The procedure is so long and tricky that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this becoming a reality anytime quickly."
Yet with the concept having been endorsed by a main panel for the first time, a minimum of a dispute has actually ignited around a topic - which previously was thought about a taboo.