The Delhi High Court (HC) on Thursday issued instructions to the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) to consider framing guidelines to facilitate the return of female athletes to competitive sport after maternity leave, noting that a balance must be maintained between the interests of the country and those of individual athletes.

Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma of the HC made the aforementioned observations while hearing Olympian Vinesh Phogat’s plea seeking permission to participate in the selector trials for the 2026 Senior World Wrestling Championships.

After the HC heard arguments from both sides, it reserved its order on Phogat’s plea.

Phogat challenges selection criteria

Senior advocate Rajshekhar Rao, appearing on behalf of Phogat, accused the WFI of acting with ‘absolute arbitrariness’, contending that the wrestler was informed about the selection criteria only on September 7, 2026.

Rao submitted that the criteria effectively excluded Phogat from the selection process following her return to competitive wrestling after pregnancy, childbirth and post-partum recovery.

Rao said in the plea, “Effectively, it means I am out of reckoning for two more years and I am finished as an athlete.”

Phogat has challenged the WFI’s September 7 circular prescribing eligibility criteria for the selection trials. She has argued that her absence from certain qualifying competitions was associated with pregnancy, childbirth and her recovery, and that her maternity-related break should not culminate in her being excluded from the competitive pathway.

The selection trials are slated to be held at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi, while the championships are poised to take place in Astana, Kazakhstan, from October 24 to November 1 this year.

Court highlights hurdles faced by women athletes

The WFI disputed Phogat’s claim that she had been barred from participating in the trials. Its counsel told the court that she had not been banned and remained free to compete at state and national levels before progressing through the prescribed selection process.

The federation also submitted that medal winners from specified competitions held in 2025 and 2026 were eligible for selection for the World Championships to be held this year.

However, Justice Sharma shed light on the hurdles faced by women athletes who take a break from competition owing to maternity. The court noted that while a woman athlete may be away from competition during pregnancy and after childbirth, male athletes can continue competing and winning medals during the same period, potentially fulfilling eligibility requirements.

The court remarked that there should be a mechanism to address such circumstances, otherwise the existing system could operate unfairly against women athletes.

Balance should be drawn between athlete, national interest

Justice Sharma also drew a parallel with challenges faced by women in the legal profession when they return to work after having children. The court asserted that appropriate guidelines should be considered to strike a balance between the interests of the country and those of individual athletes.

The HC bench also heard Phogat’s application seeking an early hearing of her challenge to disciplinary proceedings initiated against her following show-cause notices concerning alleged indiscipline, alleged anti-doping violations and alleged misconduct during the 2026 Asian Games selection trials.

Phogat has sought relief against her exclusion from the upcoming selection trials and has pleaded with the court that her maternity-related absence not be treated as a disqualification.