Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India
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5 February 2016

By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business press reporter

It is the last over of the cricket match, with India requiring 17 runs to win versus Australia.

In his two-bedroom house situated in main Mumbai, a middle-aged man is enjoying the video game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his cellphone glued to his best hand.

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

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

"I think India is winning, make the change," he tells his bookie on the phone.

And a few minutes later his forecast comes true, as India wins the match in a nail-biting finish.

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

For more than 3 decades he's been wagering 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 wagering syndicates flourish in the country.

'Black cash'

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 sports betting money is directed towards cricket.

With no legal opportunity, punters place bets using their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bet on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the greatest specific run scorer.
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Most of these transactions include so-called "black money", which is money not declared to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any kind of gaming in India, but unlike in the US which has a law forbiding web gambling, there is absolutely nothing similar here.

And overseas sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Although there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have registered accounts with offshore companies.

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

But despite this, it is "offline gaming", done through call which dominate the market.

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was established 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 wagering scandal came to light.

Two franchises have been prohibited for two years after some gamers and group officials were discovered guilty of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookmakers.

The panel also argues that legalised sports betting will generate tax earnings for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.

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

"I do not mind paying some cash out my profits, as long as I can bet openly," states our cricket gambler.

It would also open a substantial company opportunity for licensed bookies and worldwide online sports betting companies to establish operations in India.

And it would assist limit match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make transactions associated with gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside sports betting companies, you will have an extremely efficient method of marking out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering website, India Bet.

But also think, that the taxes imposed on the bettor and the bookmaker will have to be reasonable to make it appealing 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," says Mr Oborne.

He includes that individuals who use unaccounted cash to put huge bets will never bet legally.

Approval concern
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For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to develop a new law, and politically this will be a hard concept to sell.

"Despite the fact that lots of people are associated with some sort of sports betting - it's still a controversial concern for numerous," states our unnamed punter.
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And offered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to also pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their territory.

"The procedure 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 an official panel for the very first time, a minimum of an argument has fired up around a topic - which previously was considered a taboo.