The Delhi High Court on Friday came down heavily on the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) over its decision that effectively blocked wrestler Vinesh Phogat from returning to competitive wrestling ahead of the Asian Games 2026.

During the hearing, the court criticised the federation’s approach and directed authorities to make sure the star wrestler is permitted to participate in the upcoming selection trials.

Expressing concern over the prolonged dispute between Phogat and the federation, the bench questioned why Indian wrestling should continue to suffer because of internal conflicts.

The court also instructed the Centre to consider forming an expert panel to review the matter and facilitate Phogat’s participation in the Asian Games selection process.

The observations came after WFI recently introduced revised eligibility rules for the Asian Games trials. Under the updated criteria, only wrestlers who secured medals in select tournaments held during 2025 and 2026 would qualify for the trials.

Since Phogat has not competed professionally after her disqualification at the Paris Olympics 2024 and subsequent maternity break, the new rules automatically left her out of contention.

The High Court appeared sceptical about the timing and rationale behind the sudden policy changes. While hearing the matter, the bench remarked that motherhood is celebrated in India and indicated that athletes returning after maternity breaks should not be unfairly disadvantaged.

The court further noted that the federation’s deviation from its earlier selection norms raised serious questions, indirectly lending weight to Phogat’s claim that obstacles were being deliberately created to stop her return.

Phogat has repeatedly alleged that the federation has been making it difficult for her to compete in domestic events.

Earlier, she had claimed that when she attempted to register for the National Open Ranking Tournament, the registration portal displayed that entries had closed even before the official deadline. According to her, the federation processed her entry only after she publicly highlighted the issue.

The WFI, however, denied any wrongdoing and maintained that her registration had been completed properly.

The wrestler also alleged that similar last-minute changes to selection rules prevented her from participating in the Federation Cup earlier this year.

Under the federation’s latest notification, eligibility for the Asian Games trials has been restricted to medal winners from selected events, including the Senior National Wrestling Championship in Ahmedabad, the Federation Cup in Ghaziabad, and the Under-20 National Championship in Bhilai.

The women’s wrestling trials are scheduled to take place on May 30 at New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi Stadium, while freestyle and Greco-Roman events will be held a day later in Lucknow.

Phogat’s dispute with the federation traces back to the wrestlers’ protest movement against former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. She was among the prominent faces leading demonstrations demanding action over allegations of sexual harassment.

Although Brij Bhushan later stepped down, tensions between several wrestlers and the federation continued after Sanjay Singh took charge as WFI president.

Earlier this month, Phogat publicly revealed that she was among the women wrestlers who had filed sexual harassment complaints against Brij Bhushan. She stated that she chose to reveal her identity because repeated attempts were allegedly being made to obstruct her comeback before the Asian Games.

She also confirmed that she remains one of the complainants in the ongoing criminal proceedings linked to the case.