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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
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It is the last over of the cricket match, with India needing 17 go 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 resting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his right-hand man.

He has made more than 10 calls in the last 30 minutes - not to go over the match but to keep modifying his bet.

Five minutes previously his money was on Australia, but now as the Indian batsman gets all set 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 on his prediction becomes a reality, 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 years he's been wagering 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 in India. Despite that, illegal sports betting distributes grow in the country.

'Black money'

According to the Doha-based International Centre for sports betting Security, India's illegal sports betting wagering market deserves some $150bn a year. And much of that gambling money is directed towards cricket.

With no legal avenue, place bets utilizing their phones by making calls to bookies. Gamblers can bank on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest private run scorer.

Most of these transactions include so-called "black cash", which is money not declared to the taxman.

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

And offshore sports betting business are utilizing this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online sports betting operators based out of India, a lot people have actually signed up accounts with offshore companies.

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

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

Require legalisation

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

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to recommend 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 wagering scandal emerged.

Two franchises have actually been prohibited for 2 years after some gamers and group authorities were found guilty of repairing parts of the match at the behest of bookmakers.

The panel also argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax profits for the exchequer that could total up to $2bn a year.

Even gamblers feel that legalising sports betting is a relocation in the right instructions.

"I don't mind paying some money out my earnings, as long as I can gamble openly," states our cricket bettor.

It would also open a big company chance for certified bookies and international online wagering companies to establish operations in India.

And it would assist limit match repairing in cricket and other sports betting, argue lots of, by helping make deals included in gambling more transparent.

"If you work alongside wagering business, you will have a very effective technique of stamping out match repairing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting website, India Bet.

But numerous also think, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be affordable to make it attractive enough for them to bet legally.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be illegal sports betting because (some) people would not wish to leave an audit trail by going into the white market," states Mr Oborne.
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He includes that people who utilize unaccounted money to position huge bets will never ever gamble legally.

Approval concern

For sports betting to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be required to produce a brand-new law, and politically this will be a difficult concept to sell.

"Although numerous people are associated with some sort of gaming - it's still a controversial concern for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And offered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting in their territory.
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"The process is so long and tricky that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime quickly."

Yet with the idea having actually been endorsed by a main panel for the very first time, a minimum of an argument has actually sparked around a topic - which up until now was considered a taboo.