Delhi high court on Monday refused to permit wrestler Vinesh Phogat to participate in the 2026 Asian Games selection trials scheduled for May 30 and 31.
A bench led by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav observed that Phogat was already declared ineligible to participate in domestic competitions and, therefore, no interim relief could be granted in her petition challenging the Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI’s) Asian Games election policy and May 9 notice barring her from competing in domestic events, including the National Open Ranking tournament, until June 26.
According to the WFI’s February 25 policy and its May 6 circular, only medal winners from the 2025 Senior National Wrestling Championship, the 2026 Senior Federation Cup, the 2026 Under-20 National Wrestling Championship, and the Under-23 National Wrestling Championship will be eligible to participate in the Asian Games selection trials, provided these championships were conducted before the trials. The May 6 notice specifically said that past performance will not be considered.
In its May 9 notice, the WFI accused Phogat of indiscipline and violations related to anti-doping regulations. The federation said that she did not complete the mandatory six-month notice period required for athletes returning from retirement under the United World Wrestling anti-doping rules.
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The bench said that while it appreciated Phogat was on maternity leave, on the other hand, the national interest needs to be looked at as well.
“For the interim relief, there is hardly any time. She has already been held ineligible; how can we grant you that relief without hearing the other side? Unnecessarily, there is no point in allowing you to participate and then tell you that it was a nullity,” the bench said to Phogat’s lawyer Rajshekhar Rao.
It added, “Mr Rao, in that case, the policy will have to be looked into. The competing interest, we appreciate that one has to undergo the situation that the petitioner has undergone, but at the same time, the national interest will have to be…Therefore, let them file a reply. We will consider it.”
This was after Rao urged the court to allow his client to participate in the selection trials scheduled for May 30 and 31.
He argued that while she was permitted in April to register for the Senior Open Ranking tournament held in Gonda on May 10 and 11 for senior wrestlers, she was served a notice on May 9, a day before the event, and was subsequently barred from participating upon reaching the venue.
Rao contended that the tournament was her only opportunity this year to prove her capabilities. He further submitted that the qualification window coincided with her notified sabbatical, return-to-training period, pregnancy-related break, and post-partum recovery.
The court, however, permitted Phogat to file a comprehensive response to the May 9 notice and asked the WFI to take a final decision on the notice before the court heard the petition next on July 6.
“Mr Rao submits that on May 9, a show cause notice has been issued to the petitioner by the WFI. The petitioner is granted time to file a comprehensive reply to the show cause notice. The WFI in the meantime, is directed to take a final decision on the show cause notice before the next date of hearing,” the court said.
It also issued notice to the Centre, WFI and the Indian Olympic Association’s response in Phogat’s petition.
Phogat on May 3 said that she was among the six women wrestlers who lodged sexual harassment complaints against former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Alongside Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia, she was one of the leading faces of the 36-day protest held at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in April and May 2023 against Singh.
