Delhi High Court asks WFI to explain Asian Games trials exemption for Vinesh Phogat, Bajrang Punia

The Delhi High Court (HC) on Thursday asked the Indian Olympic Association’s (IOA) ad-hoc panel, which is running affairs of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), to explain the exemption granted to wrestlers Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia from the Asian Games trials. Both wrestlers were granted exemption from trials on Tuesday which led to a controversy and subsequently, a petition over the matter was filed by Under-20 World Champion Antim Panghal and Under-23 Asian Champion Sujeet Kalkal on Wednesday in the Delhi HC, asking the court to set aside the panel’s directives. Delhi HC Justice Subramonium Prasad has asked the ad-hoc panel to file its response on Thursday itself. “If it (basis for selection) is just, fair and reasonable, it is the end of the matter,” Justice Subramonium Prasad. The petition has now been listed for further hearing on Friday. During the hearing, the court asked the counsel for the ad-hoc WFI panel to state what was the basis for the selection besides Phogat and Punia being good sportspersons as the “entire case” of the petitioners was that “there has to be some kind of a trial”. “The petitioners do not doubt the merit of the two wrestlers whom you have selected to represent the country…but what they are saying is that past performance alone can’t be the basis of selection,” the court said. “What is the basis for selecting people other than the fact that they are good sportsmen, have you done any kind of a selection process?” it asked. Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma, appearing for the Centre, informed the court that the selection policy itself provides for an exemption to certain category of players. According to the WFI guidelines, selection trials in all weight categories are mandatory. However, the Selection Committee will have the discretion to select the iconic players like medallists of the Olympic/World Championship without trials provided recommendation by the Chief Coach/Foreign Expert. Counsel for the petitioners said the selection of Phogat and Punia was not in terms of the exemption policy. Phogat (53kg) and Punia (65kg) were given direct entries for the Asian Games by the Indian Olympic Association’s ad-hoc committee on Tuesday while other wrestlers will have to book their places in the Indian squad through selection trials on July 22 and 23. Panghal and Kalkal challenged the exemption and demanded a fair selection process for the quadrennial showpiece. The petition, moved by advocates Hrishikesh Baruah and Akshay Kumar, demanded that the directive issued by the IOA ad-hoc committee with regard to the two categories (men’s freestyle 65kg and women’s 53kg) be quashed and the exemption granted to Phogat and Punia be set aside. Punia is currently training in Issyk-Kul, Kyrgyzstan. Phogat, who won the 2018 Asian Games gold medal, is training in Budapest, Hungary. Both of them were at the forefront of wrestlers’ protests at Jantar Mantar demanding the arrest of former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh for the alleged sexual harassment of seven women grapplers. The two top grapplers, along with the four other protesting wrestlers – 2016 Rio Olympic medallist Sakshi, her husband Kadian, Sangeeta and Kinha – had sought time till August 10 to prepare for the Asian Games and World Championships trials. With PTI inputs