The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought the stand
of the Centre and the WFI on a plea by celebrated wrestlers Bajrang Punia,
Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik and her husband Satyawart Kadian pressing that
affairs of the federation be taken over by an IOA-ad hoc committee or a retired
Supreme Court or High Court judge.
Justice Prateek Jalan issued notice on the
application by celebrated wrestlers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik
and her husband Satyawart Kadian which sought to restrain the present
management of the WFI from taking any steps towards holding any selection
trials.
The court asked the Centre and the WFI to file in
two weeks their response to the application, which forms part of the wrestlers'
petition against the elections held in federation, and listed the matter for
hearing on December 12.
The senior counsel appearing for the petitioners
said the WFI was being run by a "proxy" president and selection
trials were being held at the cost of the wrestlers and in violation of the
court's ruling on the issue of IOA-ad hoc committee taking over the federation.
The petitioners were at the forefront of last year's
protest at the Jantar Mantar here demanding the arrest of outgoing WFI chief
Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh for alleged sexual harassment of seven women
grapplers.
Sanjay Singh, a Brij Bhushan loyalist, was elected
the new WFI chief in the polls held on December 21, 2023.
The Centre had suspended the WFI on December 24,
2023, three days after it elected the new office bearers, for allegedly not
following the provisions of its own constitution while taking decisions and
requested the IOA to constitute an ad hoc committee to manage and control its
affairs.