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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 go to win versus Australia.

In his two-bedroom home located in central Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is seeing the game, nervously. He's resting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his mobile phone glued to his right-hand man.

He has made more than 10 calls in the last 30 minutes - not to talk about the match but to keep revising his bet.

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

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

And a couple of minutes later on his forecast comes real, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.

"I have actually made $200 today,” he says with a childish glee.

For more than 3 decades he's been banking on cricket matches. We can't reveal his name as what he's doing is illegal in India.

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

'Black money'

According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's prohibited sports betting market deserves some $150bn a year. And much of that sports betting cash is directed towards cricket.
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Without any legal opportunity, punters place bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bet 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 cash not stated to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any type of sports betting in India, however unlike in the US which has a law forbiding web gaming, there is absolutely 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 signed up accounts with offshore companies.

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

But despite this, it is “offline sports betting", done through phone calls which dominate the market.

Require legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has actually grown after a panel designated by India's Supreme Court proposed the concept, stating it would help clamp down on corruption in the country's favourite sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established to recommend modifications in the functioning of India's cricket regulatory body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League wagering scandal emerged.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and group officials were discovered guilty of fixing parts of the match at the wish of bookmakers.

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

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

"I don't mind paying some cash out my profits, as long as I can bet openly,” states our cricket bettor.

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

And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make deals associated with gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering business, you will have an extremely reliable approach of stamping out match repairing,” states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.

But lots of also believe, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookie will have to be affordable to make it attractive 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 entering the white market,” states Mr Oborne.

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

Approval question

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

"Although lots of people are involved in some sort of gaming - it's still a questionable problem for many,” states our unnamed punter.

And offered that India has a federal structural - each state will have to also pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their area.
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"The procedure is so long and challenging that it will take years,” states Mr Ranina.“That's why, we are negative about this becoming a truth anytime soon.“

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