The Law Commission of India recommended a legislation to regulate sports betting and gambling activities. This recommendation comes from the Commission’s report, ‘Legal Framework: Gambling and Sports Betting including Cricket in India.’ Headed by the Chairman Justice B.S. Chauhan, the report reflects on the problems of illegal betting in India that leads to an influx and circulation of black money in the economy.
The report suggests the complete ban of betting as counter productive. It not only generates black money but also puts the participants at risk from money lenders and loan sharks. Therefore, the report recommends regulation of betting and gambling activities.
The report was commissioned by the Supreme Court (SC) during the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) vs. Cricket Association of Bihar & Ors case hearing. The report was culminated through opinions from experts, students and general citizens. Suggestions for regulation instead of prohibition was common.
According to the report, regulated betting and gambling will allow taxation of the money and therefore generate revenue for the Government. The operators, participants and players will be able to enter betting and gambling using PAN or Aadhar Card. This will allow transparency and states can supervise the activities. Further, the operators in India with a valid licence from the game licencing authorities will be allowed to offer activities to the participants and all transactions will be cashless. There will be a limit to the number of transactions on a monthly or yearly basis for each participant.
In India, presently betting on horse races is legal and taxed at 28% under GST. Legalization of gambling and betting will increase the tax revenues by tens and thousands of crores.
However, the report is based on the archaic British law, Public Gambling Act 1867 which has been discarded by Britain decades ago.
