Delhi HC refuses urgent relief to Vinesh Phogat over Asian Games selection trials
The senior counsel representing Vinesh Phogat argued that she should be permitted to participate in the Asian Games trials scheduled for May 30-31. File
| Photo Credit: The Hindu
The Delhi High Court on Monday (May 18, 2026) refused to grant immediate relief to grappler Vinesh Phogat on her plea seeking a direction permitting her to compete in the selection trials on May 30-31 for this year’s Asian Games.
The 31-year-old, who retired following her disqualification from the 2024 Paris Olympics and gave birth to a boy in July last, reversed her retirement decision on December 12, 2025.
“You (Ms Phogat) have already been declared ineligible. How can we grant you that relief without hearing the other side… The (WFI) policy will have to be looked into. There are competing interests. Yes, we appreciate (that you were on a maternity break), but at the same time, national interest is there,” Justice Kaurav remarked orally.
The court permitted her to give a “comprehensive reply” to the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) on the show cause notice issued to her over accusations of indiscipline and anti-doping rule violations.
It directed the WFI to take the show cause notice to “its logical conclusion” by July 6 and place its decision before it.
The senior counsel representing Ms. Phogat argued that she should be permitted to participate in the Asian Games trials scheduled for May 30-31. He emphasised that while internationally the ranking and status of female athletes on maternity leave are protected, the latest WFI policy excluded her.
Ms. Phogat’s counsel said there was “something more than what meets the eye” in this case, as she was barred from participating in a competition in Gonda on May 10-11 after the show cause notice was issued to her a day before.
The court listed the matter for hearing on July 6.
The WFI had declared Ms. Phogat ineligible to participate in domestic events till June 26, 2026, citing the mandatory six-month notice period linked to athletes returning from retirement under anti-doping rules.
She, however, showed up at the National Open Ranking Tournament in Gonda.
Ms. Phogat had participated in the protest by women wrestlers in 2023 against alleged sexual harassment by WFI’s then-president Brijbhushan Sharan Singh.
Published – May 18, 2026 06:27 pm IST
