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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting in India
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5 February 2016
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By Sameer Hashmi
Mumbai Business reporter
It is the last over of the cricket match, with India requiring 17 runs to win against Australia.
In his two-bedroom house situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is watching the video game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his cellphone glued to his right-hand man.
He has made more than 10 contact the last thirty minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep revising his bet.
Five minutes earlier his money was on Australia, however now as the Indian batsman prepares yourself to face the last over he's altered his mind.
"I think India is winning, make the modification," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.
And a few minutes later on 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 childlike 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.
Besides horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed in India. Despite that, prohibited sports betting distributes prosper in the nation.
'Black cash'
According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's unlawful sports betting market is worth some $150bn a year. And much of that gambling cash is directed towards cricket.
Without any legal opportunity, punters position bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bank on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest private run scorer.
Most of these deals involve so-called "black cash", which is cash not stated to the taxman.
The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of sports betting in India, however unlike in the US which has a law forbiding web gambling, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.
And overseas wagering companies are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have actually signed up accounts with overseas companies.
"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is uncertain for online gaming," says Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.
But regardless of this, it is "offline sports betting", done through phone calls which dominate the market.
Calls for legalisation
The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has actually grown after a panel appointed by India's Supreme Court proposed the idea, saying it would help clamp down on corruption in the nation's preferred sport.
The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established 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 came to light.
Two franchises have actually been prohibited for two years after some players and group authorities were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.
The panel likewise argues that legalised sports betting will generate tax profits for the exchequer that might total up to $2bn a year.
Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the right direction.
"I do not mind paying some cash out my earnings, as long as I can bet openly," says our cricket gambler.
It would also open a substantial business opportunity for certified bookmakers and sports betting companies to establish operations in India.
And it would assist restrict match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by assisting make deals involved in gambling more transparent.
"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have an extremely effective technique of stamping out match repairing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.
But lots of likewise think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will need to be reasonable to make it attractive enough for them to gamble lawfully.
However, there are limitations.
"Definitely there will be illegal wagering since (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit path by going into the white market," says Mr Oborne.
He includes that individuals who utilize unaccounted money to put huge bets will never ever gamble legally.
Approval concern
For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to develop a new law, and politically this will be a difficult concept to sell.
"Although many people are associated with some sort of gambling - it's still a questionable problem for many," states our unnamed punter.
And given that India has a federal structural - each state will have to likewise pass a different law to legalise sports betting in their territory.
"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 quickly."
Yet with the concept having actually been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, at least an argument has actually fired up around a topic - which previously was considered a taboo.
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