Delhi High Court will hear the petition of wrestlers against WFI elections

New Delhi: Delhi High Court will hear the petition of wrestler Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and her husband Satyavrat on Monday. The wrestlers have filed a petition in the court demanding that the Indian Wrestling Federation elections be declared illegal. The wrestlers said in their petition that the rules set by the Sports Ministry have been violated in this election. The petition is listed before Judge Sachin Dutta for hearing. It has been argued in the petition that the rules of the Sports Ministry have been disregarded in the elections held on December 21. Along with this, a demand has been made to the Federation that all types of activities should be stopped until the matter is resolved. Citing the actions of the federation, the petition said that apart from the petitioners, many athletes have suffered losses due to the federation, especially due to the influence of former president Brijbhushan Sharan Singh.
Last year, wrestlers had protested at Jantar Mantar demanding the arrest of former Indian Wrestling Federation President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. The wrestlers had alleged that Brij Bhushan had misused his position and sexually exploited many female wrestlers. The petition now accuses the WFI of attempting to silence and sideline the protesting athletes, thereby impacting their international participation prospects.
The wrestlers have termed the WFI as a “habitual offender” for continuously ignoring the instructions of the Sports Ministry and the ad-hoc committee. He claims that these actions have greatly hindered the career growth of Indian wrestlers. Despite the Sports Ministry’s direction to the WFI to cease its management functions and refrain from conducting trials or national events, the federation allegedly continued to organize unauthorized trials and events. The petition demands the court to invalidate the December 21 elections, terming them fundamentally flawed and a gross violation of the Sports Code.