In the light of incidents of match and spot fixing in the
recently concluded IPL in India ,
many stakeholders are advocating creation of a new stricter legal framework and
legalization of sports betting to keep a check on match and spot fixing.
The moderator of the session Sanjiv Paul, Chairman
Sports Committee and MD, Tata Metaliks, voiced the misgivings in the minds
of stakeholders on sports betting, its possible regulation and issues related
to addictive tendencies of vulnerable classes.
Srivastava who is heading the team investigating
the IPL fixing case said while on the one hand, regulating sports betting can
help in generating revenues in the form of taxes from betting operators and
will play as a deterrent for the young who indulge in the act. On the other
hand, he said, we must not forget that betting is not approved by our society
and we also lack the requisite education and awareness in this regard.
He agreed that India is in need of stringent laws
in sports but the country is not yet ready to accept regulation in betting. He
suggested that legalizing of betting could be considered 10-15 years later.
Albert Climent, founder, Bluesea-Gaming.com and Adviser,
Asian Gambling Brief, assured that India is ready for regulating
sports betting and it will reduce match fixing because the authorities will
work in tandem with betting operators and not against them. The betting
operators will not encourage match fixing as they would want to earn profits
and will be answerable to the authorities.
But here it must be kept in mind that only reliable
operators are issued licenses and they comply with all the pre-requisites. He pointed
out that it would be easier to track the flow of money and once India legalizes
betting, it will automatically come under the ring fence which will allow
Indians to bet with Indians only and help in keeping the Indian money spent on
betting in the country itself.
While sharing his views on the subject, George Oborne, managing
director, India Bet.com, said that he is in favour of legalizing sports
betting in India
and gave examples of regulated markets where match fixing reduced considerably
after betting became legal. However, he emphasized that laws need to be rebuilt
and rewritten from India ’s
viewpoint to make this framework effective.
Vidushpat Singhania, senior associate, Lakshmikumaran and
Sridharan Attorneys, stated that sports is marred by two evils –
doping and match fixing and later is a bigger menace. FICCI report shows that
betting market in India is around Rs. 300,000 crore, hence we first need to
assess how accurate this number is, how big is the betting industry and what
are the other intricacies that have to be taken care of before regulating
betting in sports. Then, a social impact study will have to be undertaken and a
committee will have to be set up where all the relevant stakeholders must be
consulted on the issue. Betting needs to be regulated but there are many issues
which have to be dealt with first.
Harsimran Kalra, public policy scholar, The Hindu
Centre for Politics and Public Policy, said that first it must be
ascertained, who are the people who indulge in this activity and have
sufficient data on it. Then we should look at the money transfers that take
place and determine the source and amount. Another aspect which must be
considered is the impact of regulating sports betting on society.
Abhijit Sarkar, co-chairman, Sports Committee and Head
Corporate Communication, Sahara India Pariwar, said that at
present ambience in sports arena in India
Press release
No comments:
Post a Comment