Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi
New Delhi, Jun 4: The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to expunge observations made by the Delhi High Court in its judgment allowing wrestler Vinesh Phogat to participate in the Asian Games 2026 selection trials.
A Bench comprising Justices P.S. Narasimha and Aravind Kumar said the petition filed by the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) had become infructuous as Phogat had already participated in the trials following an interim order passed by the apex court on May 29.
While refusing to remove the High Court's remarks against the wrestling body, the Supreme Court clarified that the disposal of the petition should not be construed as an endorsement of those observations.
“In view of subsequent developments, this SLP is rendered infructuous. This court will not be taken as having reiterated the findings and observations of the High Court. The issues are kept open,” the Bench said.
The WFI had challenged a May 22 judgment of the Delhi High Court that permitted Phogat to take part in the Asian Games selection trials.
In its ruling, a Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia had observed that Phogat was unable to satisfy the federation’s selection criteria because she was on maternity leave. The court had stated that motherhood could not become a basis for excluding or marginalising female athletes.
The High Court had also criticised the WFI for issuing a show-cause notice to Phogat, describing the action as “deplorable” and “vindictive”.
The notice had referred to Phogat’s disqualification from the Paris Olympics for being overweight as a “national shame”, a description that the High Court strongly objected to, saying it reflected mala fide intent on the part of the federation.
Following the judgment, WFI moved the Supreme Court. On May 29, the apex court allowed Phogat to participate in the selection trials while keeping the matter pending.
Phogat subsequently took part in the trials but failed to qualify for the Asian Games.
During Thursday’s hearing, senior advocate D.N. Goburdhun, appearing for the WFI, urged the court to expunge the High Court’s remarks against the federation.
“She was allowed to participate but created quite a havoc there. The High Court judgment from paragraph 31 onwards has to go. It has gone to the extent of saying mala fide, deplorable; all of it has to be expunged,” he argued.
Goburdhun further contended that the matter was still pending before a single-judge Bench of the High Court and that the observations could influence future proceedings.
However, the Supreme Court declined the request and closed the matter.
According to reports, Phogat was initially barred from the trials because eligibility was restricted to medal winners from specified competitions held in 2025 and 2026. Having announced her retirement after the 2024 Olympics and returned to wrestling only in December 2025, she had not participated in those events.
The WFI's show-cause notice accused her of indiscipline, anti-doping violations and failure to comply with mandatory return-to-competition procedures. It also alleged that she had not completed the six-month notice period required under United World Wrestling regulations before resuming competition.
Phogat denied the allegations, stating that both the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the International Testing Agency had cleared her to compete from January 2026. She also alleged that the federation was attempting to force her into retirement and described its actions as unfair and politically motivated.