Shivangi Prakash-
The Delhi High Court on Thursday gave the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI), India’s premier authority for the promotion and development of para-sports, a day to seek instructions on a petition filed by shooter Naresh Kumar Sharma against his non-selection for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Sharma is a five-time Paralympian and an Arjuna Awardee.
After hearing Petitioner’s attorney, Advocate Jatan Singh, Justice Rekha Palli instructed PCI’s counsel, Advocate Naveen Kumar Chaudhary, to obtain directions in the issue and come up with a statement by tomorrow.
The Petitioner claims that the PCI Selection Committee implemented the qualifying criteria set forth in the National Sports Development Code of India 2011 incorrectly when shortlisting candidates. He claims that the Committee wrongly chose one Deepak instead of him to compete in the R7 event at the Tokyo Paralympics.
According to him, a para shooter must have competed in at least two WSPS (World Shooting Para Sports) approved international competitions to be able to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.
According to Singh, Deepak has only competed in one such event, and the Committee has incorrectly used the Serbia Grand Prix to calculate his marks, despite the fact that the event is not a recognised WSPS competition under Rule 1.2 and 2.9.
The Petitioner also claimed that the Respondents purposefully imposed requirements that are in violation of this guideline, claiming that participation in one international event is sufficient to make a person eligible.
According to Chaudhary, Sharma has not won a single medal, and his continued involvement simply causes problems.
Justice Palli made it clear from the start that the scope of the Court’s intervention in cases like this one is restricted because it is the domain of specialists.
As a result, the Court has scheduled a hearing for tomorrow.
It has also permitted the impleadment of athlete Deepak as a Respondent-party by an oral prayer.The event is planned to begin on August 25.