The Delhi high court questioned why the sport should suffer because of ongoing disputes within the wrestling administration.

The Delhi high court on Friday pulled up the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) over its decision to declare wrestler Vinesh Phogat “ineligible” to participate in domestic competitions and asked the Centre to constitute an expert panel to assess her case.

Hearing Phogat’s appeal against a single-judge order passed on May 18, a bench comprising Chief Justice DK Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia questioned the federation’s stand and observed that its departure from the earlier practice of allowing reputed athletes to compete “speaks volumes,” reported news agency PTI.

The court directed the Centre to ensure that Phogat, who is seeking a return to wrestling after a maternity break, is allowed to participate in the selection trials for this year’s Asian Games scheduled for May 30 and 31.

‘Motherhood is celebrated’
The bench also underlined that motherhood is celebrated in the country and said the federation should not act with “vengeance”.

During the hearing, the government counsel informed the court that the Sports Authority of India framework allows relaxation of eligibility norms in certain cases. Following this, the bench orally observed, “Ask the experts to evaluate her chances.. Ensure that she participates,” the PTI report added.

The court said it would take up the matter again at 2.30 pm to allow the Centre to provide further details regarding the constitution of the expert panel.

Earlier, the bench had remarked, “Whatever may be the feud or dispute, why should the cause of wrestling suffer?” while questioning the WFI’s decision to bar Vinesh Phogat from domestic wrestling events.

What the HC has observed earlier
Earlier on Monday the high court had refused to permit Phogat to participate in the upcoming Asian Games selection trials scheduled for May 30 and 31.

A bench headed by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav noted that the wrestler had already been declared “ineligible” to compete in domestic tournaments, and therefore no interim relief could be granted on her plea challenging the WFI Asian Games selection policy and its May 9 notice.