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ShareMumbai: Legally speaking, betting on events other than the outcome of horse races in select race courses across India is banned in the country. Yet, the coming few weeks will witness some spectacular betting action with people predicting outcomes in two of India's favourite pastimes - elections and India's performance in the Champion's Trophy.
Like cricket betting where one places a wager on the winning team in a match and the eventual tournament, political betting focuses on the number of seats each party is likely to win in the states.
According to Intelligence Bureau (IB) estimates, the following weeks will witness a betting turnover of more than Rs500 crore with a number of interested parties betting from abroad and using the hawala network to channel the money.
According to insiders, the bookies who receive bets for cricket matches do not take bets for any other event like an election. The bookies are connected through an online network and phone lines and in case a cricket bookie gets a client keen on betting on the elections, the bookie will most likely forward his request to a colleague who takes election bets. Bookies do not accept bets from unknown clients unless they come backed by strong 'references'. In India, where betting is illegal, bookies operate underground.
However in countries like the UK and the USA where betting in most sports is allowed, bookies operate through official websites and offices and also pay taxes. The Mumbai police hope to raid a few bookies this season. "A lot of foreign betting houses are openly taking bets on matches and other tournaments that are held in India. We are on the lookout for Indian bookies that are likely to do some good business," a Mumbai police official said.
The official said that Gujarat and Maharashtra alone can generate a turnover of Rs200 crore for the cricket bookies.
