Delhi HC Seeks WFI Response On Vinesh Phogat's Plea Against Disciplinary Action

The Delhi High Court has sought the Wrestling Federation of India’s stand on Vinesh Phogat’s plea against disciplinary action by the federation. Phogat is the petitioner and WFI is the respondent in the case. The court’s move pushes the matter forward after the wrestler challenged the federation’s action before the bench.

Phogat has filed a plea challenging two WFI show-cause notices dated May 9 and June 17, along with the resulting disciplinary proceedings and the validity of the Disciplinary Committee.

What Did Vinesh Phogat Challenge?

The May 9 notice alleged indiscipline, anti-doping rule violations, competing in two weight categories during the March 2024 trials and non-compliance with the mandatory six-month return-to-competition procedure after retirement. It also cited her 2024 Paris Olympics disqualification as a "national embarrassment". The June 17 notice was issued over her conduct during the Asian Games selection trials.

Phogat has filed a plea challenging disciplinary action taken by WFI against her. The plea is before the Delhi High Court.

What Did Delhi High Court Say?

The court has now asked WFI to respond. The matter concerns disciplinary action by the federation. Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma said she was not issuing formal notice at this stage. The court instead asked WFI's counsel to obtain instructions. The matter will next be heard on September 29.

May 9 show-cause notice concerns allegations relating to anti-doping/whereabouts requirements and also concerns Phogat's participation in two weight categories during the March 2024 selection trials.

June 17 show-cause notice relates to her conduct during the Asian Games selection trials. Phogat has challenged the validity of the disciplinary proceedings and argued that the first notice relied on outdated anti-doping rules and contained legal defects.

The court also heard a separate plea by Phogat seeking a fair and structured WFI framework for women athletes returning to competitive sport after pregnancy, childbirth and postpartum recovery.

According to the petition, the International Testing Agency (ITA) informed Phogat on July 3, 2025, that she would be eligible to return to competition from January 1, 2026. Phogat has maintained that she fulfilled the requirements for her return, but alleged that the WFI later introduced an eligibility framework that effectively prevented her from participating in the selection process.

Phogat has also challenged the legal validity of the first show-cause notice. She contends that the notice cites the superseded UWW Anti-Doping Rules, 2015, as well as a “Rule 56” that she says does not exist. She further argues that the alleged whereabouts violation does not contain the necessary elements required to constitute an Article 2.4 violation under the World Anti-Doping Code, according to ANI.