1 For Sports Gambling to Be Legalised

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Howzat? The clamour to legalise sports betting wagering in India

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bet9ja.com
5 February 2016

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By Sameer Hashmi

Mumbai Business reporter

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

In his two-bedroom home situated in central Mumbai, a middle-aged guy is seeing the game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour sofa with his smart phone glued to his ideal hand.

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

Five minutes earlier his cash was on Australia, and now as the Indian batsman prepares to deal with the last over he's altered his mind.

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

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

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

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

Other than horse racing, sports betting of any kind is not allowed in India. Despite that, unlawful 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 gambling cash is directed towards cricket.

Without any legal opportunity, punters position 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 private run scorer.

The majority of these transactions involve so-called "black money", which is money not stated to the taxman.

The 1867 Public Gambling Act bars any type of gaming in India, but unlike in the US which has a law restricting internet sports betting, there is nothing similar here.

And overseas wagering business are utilizing this loophole to draw Indians. Despite the fact that there are no online wagering 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 unclear for online gambling," says Mumbai- based lawyer HP Ranina.

But despite this, it is "offline sports betting", done through call which control the marketplace.

Calls for legalisation

The clamour to legalise wagering in cricket has 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 set up to recommend modifications in the performance of India's cricket regulatory body, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), after the 2013 Indian Premier League sports betting scandal emerged.

Two franchises have been banned for two years after some players and group authorities were discovered guilty of repairing parts of the match at the wish of bookies.

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

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

"I do not mind paying some cash out my revenues, as long as I can gamble openly," says our cricket gambler.
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It would also open a substantial business opportunity for certified bookies and international online wagering business to set up operations in India.

And it would assist limit match fixing in cricket and other sports betting, argue many, by helping make deals associated with gambling more transparent.
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"If you work together with sports betting companies, you will have a really effective approach of stamping out match fixing," states George Oborne, who runs a mock wagering site, India Bet.

But lots of likewise think, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be affordable to make it appealing enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are restrictions.

"Definitely there will be illegal sports betting due to the fact that (some) individuals would not want to leave an audit path by getting in the white market," states Mr Oborne.

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

Approval question

For sports betting gambling to be legalised, parliamentary approval will be needed to create a new law, and politically this will be a difficult idea to sell.

"Even though lots of people are associated with some sort of sports betting - it's still a questionable concern for lots of," states our unnamed punter.

And considered that India has a federal structural - each state will need to likewise pass a separate law to legalise sports betting gambling in their area.

"The process is so long and tricky that it will take years," states Mr Ranina."That's why, we are cynical about this becoming a truth anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having been backed by an official panel for the first time, a minimum of a dispute has actually fired up around a subject - which previously was considered a taboo.