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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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 against Australia.

In his two-bedroom home located in central Mumbai, a middle-aged male is watching the video game, nervously. He's sitting on the edge of his grey colour couch with his smart phone glued to his right-hand man.
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He has made more than 10 employ the last thirty minutes - not to go over the match however to keep revising his bet.

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

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

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

"I have made $200 today," he states with a childish glee.
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For more than three years he's been banking on cricket matches. We can't reveal his name as what he's doing is illegal in India.

Aside from horse racing, sports betting wagering of any kind is not permitted in India. Despite that, illegal sports betting syndicates grow in the nation.

'Black money'
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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 cash is directed towards cricket.

With no legal opportunity, punters position bets using their phones by making calls to bookmakers. Gamblers can bet on anything associated to the cricket match, from who is winning to the highest individual run scorer.
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Most of these deals involve so-called "black money", which is cash not stated to the taxman.

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

And offshore wagering business are using this loophole to lure Indians. Even though there are no online wagering operators based out of India, a lot individuals have actually registered accounts with overseas firms.

"Legally you can escape [with this], as the law is unclear for online gambling," states Mumbai- based legal representative HP Ranina.

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

Require legalisation

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 preferred sport.

The Justice RM Lodha Commission was set up to suggest 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 wagering scandal came to light.

Two franchises have been prohibited for two years after some gamers and group officials were found guilty of fixing parts of the match at the behest of bookies.

The panel also argues that legalised wagering will bring in tax revenues for the exchequer that might amount to $2bn a year.

Even bettors feel that legalising sports betting wagering is a relocation in the ideal direction.

"I don't mind paying some money out my revenues, as long as I can bet openly," says our cricket gambler.

It would also open a substantial organization opportunity for licensed bookmakers and global online sports betting companies to establish operations in India.

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

"If you work alongside wagering companies, you will have a very reliable technique of stamping out match fixing," says George Oborne, who runs a mock sports betting site, India Bet.
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But many likewise believe, that the taxes imposed on the gambler and the bookmaker will have to be sensible to make it attractive enough for them to bet lawfully.

However, there are constraints.

"Definitely there will be prohibited wagering due to the fact that (some) people would not wish to leave an audit trail by entering the white market," says Mr Oborne.

He adds that individuals who use unaccounted money to position huge bets will never ever bet lawfully.

Approval question

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

"Although lots of people are included in some sort of gambling - it's still a controversial issue for numerous," 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 gambling in their territory.
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"The process is so long and difficult that it will take years," says Mr Ranina."That's why, we are negative about this coming true anytime quickly."

Yet with the concept having been backed by a main panel for the first time, a minimum of a dispute has actually ignited around a topic - which until now was considered a taboo.