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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 press reporter
It is the last over of the cricket match, with India needing 17 go to win versus Australia.
In his two-bedroom home located in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is seeing the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his mobile phone glued to his right hand.
He has actually made more than 10 calls in the last 30 minutes - not to discuss the match but to keep modifying his bet.
Five minutes previously his cash was on Australia, now as the Indian batsman prepares to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.
"I think India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookmaker on the phone.
And a couple of minutes later his forecast comes true, as India wins the match in a nail-biting surface.
"I have made $200 today," he says 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 illegal in India.
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Other than horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed India. Despite that, illegal sports betting distributes grow in the nation.
'Black cash'
According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's illegal sports betting market deserves some $150bn a year. And much of that sports betting money is directed towards cricket.
Without any legal avenue, punters place bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can wager on anything related to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest private run scorer.
Most of these transactions involve so-called "black cash", which is money not declared to the taxman.
The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any sort of gaming in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting web gambling, there is absolutely nothing comparable here.
And offshore sports betting business are using this loophole to draw Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot people have actually registered accounts with offshore companies.
"Legally you can get away [with this], as the law is ambiguous for online gambling," says Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.
But despite this, it is "offline gambling", done through call 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 assist secure down on corruption in the country's preferred sport.
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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 in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League wagering scandal emerged.
Two franchises have been banned for two years after some gamers and group officials were condemned of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookmakers.
The panel likewise argues that legalised wagering will generate tax revenues for the exchequer that might amount to $2bn a year.
Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting is a move in the best direction.
"I do not mind paying some money out my profits, as long as I can bet openly," says our cricket gambler.
It would also open a big service opportunity for certified bookmakers and international online sports betting business to establish operations in India.
And it would help restrict match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by assisting make transactions included in gambling more transparent.
"If you work together with wagering business, you will have a very efficient technique of marking out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.
But many also think, that the taxes levied on the bettor and the bookmaker will have to be reasonable to make it appealing enough for them to gamble lawfully.
However, there are limitations.
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"Definitely there will be unlawful wagering because (some) individuals would not wish to leave an audit path by going into the white market," says Mr Oborne.
He adds that individuals who use unaccounted cash to put big bets will never bet legally.
Approval concern
For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to create a brand-new law, and politically this will be a hard idea to sell.
"Although lots of people are included in some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial issue for numerous," states our unnamed punter.
And given that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their territory.
"The process is so long and challenging that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime soon."
Yet with the concept having been backed by a main panel for the first time, at least a debate has sparked around a subject - which till now was thought about a taboo.
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For Sports Gambling to Be Legalised
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