The Delhi High Court allowed wrestler Vinesh Phogat to participate in Asian Games selection trials, calling WFI’s policy exclusionary towards iconic athletes returning after maternity breaks, while directing video-recording of trials and appointment of independent observers from SAI and IOA.
The Delhi High Court has allowed renowned wrestler Vinesh Phogat to take part in the selection trials for the Asian Games, holding that the Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI) selection policy is exclusionary. The court said the policy fails to provide any discretion to consider an “iconic player” like Phogat, who is returning after a maternity break.
A bench comprising Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia directed that the trials, scheduled for May 30–31, be video-recorded, and that an independent observer from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) along with another from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) must be present.
In its order, the court said,
“The appellant (Phogat) shall be permitted to participate in the selection trials for the Asian Games, 2026, which are scheduled for 30.05.2026 and 31.05.2026,”
The bench observed,
“The policy and the circular are clearly exclusionary in nature as it does not give any discretion to Respondent No.1 (WFI) to consider iconic players like the appellant in view of the sabbatical taken on account of her maternity leave,”
The court said the approach adopted for the selection trials reflects a departure from past practice, which had allowed discretion in the case of iconic athletes for the Asian Games. It further emphasised that the law must ensure that motherhood is not used to exclude female sports persons such as Phogat.
The Court Said,
“Motherhood, it asserted, cannot be treated as a professional impediment or a circumstance warranting adverse treatment.”
The court also noted that the grounds raised by the WFI in the May 9 show-cause notice to Phogat “appear to be pre-mediated and reopening the closed issues,” and that “it is necessary that the appellant is permitted to participate in the selection trials in the interest of the sport and justice”.
The court further took exception to the WFI’s reference in the show-cause notice to Phogat’s disqualification at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games as “national embarrassment,” describing the remark as “deplorable”, “ex-facie misconceived” and “ought to have been avoided”.
It said,
“Such observations are retrograde and show the mala-fide intent of Respondent No.1 by being vindictive against the appellant,”
Pointing to the reasons behind Phogat’s non-inclusion, the court said her exclusion from the trials stemmed from her “sabbatical and temporary retirement”. It added that any provision that places a woman at a disadvantage due to pregnancy or post-partum recovery violates the Constitution’s non-discrimination guarantees under Articles 14 and 21.
The court said,
“It cannot be denied that the journey of a female athlete through pregnancy and the post-partum period is one that is marked by extraordinary physical challenges, the magnitude of which is often insufficiently acknowledged within institutional sporting frameworks,”
It added,
“Motherhood must be viewed as a natural and deeply-significant aspect of life that deserves accommodation and institutional sensitivity. Therefore, the law must ensure that motherhood does not become a ground for exclusion or marginalisation of female athletes, such as the appellant,”
The order came on Phogat’s appeal against a May 18 ruling by a single-judge bench, which had declined to grant her immediate relief regarding participation in the selection trials. The court noted that since the single judge is currently examining the selection policy and the show-cause notice, it should not allow the petition to become ineffective at this stage by preventing her from appearing for the Asian Games trials.
It stated that, prima facie, Phogat has made out a strong case on merits against the policy and the circular for being arbitrary and discriminatory.
The court said,
“It is clear that except for the appellant’s motherhood and the SCN issued by Respondent No.1, she would be entitled to participate in the selection trials. Therefore, the circumstances were beyond her control and while the legality of the policy, the circular and the outcome of the SCN is examined by the learned single judge, it is deemed appropriate to protect the interest of the appellant by permitting her to participate in the selection trials,”
The bench also directed the two independent observers one from the SAI and one from the IOA to be nominated by the Centre and to submit a report before the single-judge bench.
Phogat’s petition challenges the WFI’s selection policy and circular, which restrict eligibility for the Asian Games trials only to medal winners of specified tournaments. Phogat argued that the “qualification window” selected by the WFI significantly overlapped with her notified sabbatical due to pregnancy and post-partum recovery, which she said created a “closed and inflexible gate-keeping mechanism” that was arbitrary and discriminatory.
Earlier this month, the WFI declared Phogat ineligible for domestic competitions until June 26, citing a mandatory six-month notice period for athletes returning from retirement under anti-doping rules. Despite this, Phogat reportedly participated in the National Open Ranking Tournament in Gonda, Uttar Pradesh.
Phogat had also been involved in a protest by women wrestlers in 2023 against alleged sexual harassment by the then WFI president and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
In August 2024, Phogat was disqualified from the 50-kg category Olympic finals after being found 100 gm overweight in the morning weigh-in.
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