Law Commission Of India Asks To Legalize Gambling

Gambling and sports betting in India is not uncommon. Everyone, right from labourers and waiters to businessmen and politicians love to engage in sports bets from time to time. However, they all have to be very careful in our country as gambling and sports betting in India is strictly illegal.

A majority of famous Bollywood personalities also love betting on matches, with Arbaaz Khan being the latest to get into trouble over IPL betting concerns. For decades, there has been the argument of legalizing these practices in India, but that actually happening has always seemed unlikely.

Yesterday, the Law Commission of India presented a report to Indian law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad. They clearly stated that complete prevention of such activities (gambling and cricket-related betting) is highly impossible and that ‘effective regulation’ was their best bet moving forward.

The Law Commission recommended to the Government of India that they allow gambling and sports betting as ‘regulated activities’, which will make it okay to place sports bets while a few restrictions will still be in place. However, they also recommended that the government ensured that match-fixing and sports fraud are criminal offences.

This legal body was asked to prepare a report by the Supreme Court in 2016, regarding creating a law that would legalize cricket match betting in the country However, they went one step further and included gambling as they believe that gambling and sports betting are ‘intertwined’.

An official of the commission said, “We have stated that a board of experts should decide which games should be exempted.” This is regarding exempting ‘skill-based’ games from the gambling laws, like horse racing, poker and others. They also recommended individuals who wish to indulge in such activities should link their Aadhar and PAN cards. High stakes betting would then only be allowed for those who can afford it.

Keep reading GutshotMagazine.com for more updates on the legality of sports betting and gambling in India.