We didn’t recommend legalisation, says Indian law commission

When media around the world all interpret your conclusions in a similar way, it’s an indication that this is the manner in which they are perceived; that’s a lesson for the experts at the Law Commission of India following Friday’s “clarification” of its findings on gambling.

The (perceived) recommendations of the Commission following a two-year study of gambling were conveyed in its report Legal Framework: Gambling and Sports Betting including Cricket in India released last week. The conclusions were widely interpreted as recommending the legalisation of gambling in India as a taxable activity from whence revenues could be used as a source of foreign direct investment (see previous report).

But on Friday the Commission issued a clarification explaining that this was not what it meant at all, and that it had instead “strongly and categorically” stated that legalisation would not be desirable in the present scenario.

In fact, the Law Commission feels that a complete ban on unlawful betting and gambling should be ensured.

The clarification suggested that the reason for the confusion was because its report had been misinterpreted and not highlighted in the right perspective.

In other words, blame the media, most which apparently got it all wrong.

The clarification went on to assert that only if it is not possible to enforce a complete ban should effective regulation be turned to as the only viable alternative.

“Incapability to enforce a complete ban has resulted in a rampant increase in illegal gambling, resulting in a boom in black-money generation and circulation. Since it is not possible to prevent these activities completely, effectively regulating them remains the only viable option,” the Commission actually noted in the Legal Framework: Gambling and Sports Betting including Cricket in India.

It went on to claim that the current measures undertaken by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to control unlawful activities are “ineffective and insufficient”.

The media was not the only source that “misinterpreted” the Commission’s findings: addressing media in New Delhi on Friday, Congress leader Manish Tewari said: “It’s (legalisation) a very bad idea. It should be opposed. Not only will it subvert sports but also convert every pan shop into a ‘jue ka addaa’ (gambling hub). This will have serious implications on the social health of the country.”

Former cricketer Madan Lal had the opposite view on what he thought the Commission had recommended, saying that legalisation was a “good judgement,” and adding:

“Betting is not going to end anyway. But, I will say whatever money gets collected it should be divided amongst weak associations.”

Former Attorney-General of India Soli Sorabjee shared similar sentiments in his interpretation of the Commission’s recommendations..

“I think (legalisation) is a good suggestion and I welcome this. Anything can cause a problem, it depends how it works for the people. But that shouldn’t be the reason not to accept the recommendation of the Law Commission. I think we should implement the recommendation and see how it works,” he said.

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