A peek into the black market

Organised Racket

Like all successful events, the Indian Premiere League (IPL) too has many black marketeers who are out to earn a quick buck.

During the last match, these black marketeers were active at all the gates of Chinnaswamy Stadium, especially at G-9, G-8, G-6, G-11 and G-20.

They stood all along the boulevard, right up till Anil Kumble Circle. 
 
With tickets in the black market fetching anywhere between Rs 600 and Rs 3,000, it was clear that this was a once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity for black marketeers to make a killing.

The men discreetly went around and approached people who hadn’t got tickets. The word quickly passed around and the line of people waiting to buy tickets in black grew even larger.

Reporters from Metrolife did a reality check by posing as prospective buyers and found out that those who sold tickets in black are part of an organised community. The men who painted faces, sold T-shirts and snacks and even the chai wallah at the match knew exactly where tickets in black were available.

An IPL ticket priced at Rs 330 was being sold for Rs 800 and those priced at Rs 825 were being sold for nothing less than Rs 1,500.

The more expensive tickets, such as those available for Rs 3,400, were being sold for Rs 3,000. This was the going rate for those who didn’t have the time to stand in long lines or even book a ticket online.

It wasn’t too hard to spot these touts at the match, as they quickly came up to people asking if they needed a ticket. The touts were waiting to give the best rate and bargain their way through.

Most of them had tickets ready for the general stands like M1, M2 and M3 but ask for a stand that’s priced slightly higher — like the P4 stand for example — and the tout said that they had someone ‘inside’ who can get the tickets for a heftier price.

Devraj, part of the service staff during the IPL and also a tout, made a couple of phone calls and shared his cellphone number, before assuring reporters that he would manage to get them in.

“I can easily get you tickets to the stands that are priced higher — just call me in 15 minutes,” he said. A cop on guard promised to let these two reporters in at 8 pm as soon as the gates opened, even without a ticket, saying, “Don’t worry — just hang around here and I will get you both in.”

Getting a picture to establish the racket was a challenge in itself. Since the match was held at night, the photographer had to use his flash to get a clear picture.

The touts were so engrossed in selling tickets that they looked too stunned to react when the photographer began taking snaps. People were more than willing to shell out a few hundred rupee notes in exchange for tickets. 

But those who have struggled to get tickets for the match feel it’s not good to buy tickets from black marketeers. Deepak Inamdar, a real estate agent, feels buying and selling tickets in black is unfair.

“When so many people stand in the queue to buy a ticket, getting a ticket so easily in black is unfair,” he says.

Rumana Singh wonders why one is willing to pay more for a ticket in black. “I would rather wait in line and get tickets than buy it from some random guy I don’t even know,” she sums up.

When asked if the police was aware of such a racket, additional commissioner of police (law and order) T Suneel Kumar says, “We haven’t come across people selling tickets in black. If we do then we’ll make sure it is stopped.”