Justice Sanjeev Narula of the High Court of Delhi on Monday caught the Equestrian Federation of India (EFI) counsel Jayant Mehta off guard by asking him why it would not admit all State Equestrian Associations as members if the 12 it has admitted were not in compliance with the National Sports Development Code of India, 2011.
Continuing his hearing of Rajasthan Equestrian Association’s writ against EFI, Justice Sanjeev Narula’s attention was drawn when the EFI counsel claimed that State Associations were not compliant with the National Sports Development Code of India 2011 and that not even one State Association has 50 per cent districts as members as needed by the Code.
It was interesting that when the Judge asked the EFI Counsel who had exempted the State Associations (from Code-compliance), the EFI Counsel said they have been exempted by the Government and that they had been admitted when the EFI Statute was not in accordance with the Sports Code.
Justice Narula again intervened when the EFI Counsel said most State Associations were not representing the sport at all and if a 13th State Association was admitted, it would only be a namesake association because it does not have the representative character of the sport.
“How have you allowed the 12 State Associations? What was the test you applied to them? If you granted them their exemptions… Who granted them the exemptions? And if they were less than 50 (per cent of districts) then what was the criteria that you applied that we can’t have broad-based (approach) to other States also?” he said.
The moot question that arises from the EFI Counsel’s argument that the State Associations are not Code compliant since they do not have district associations in half the districts in their respective jurisdiction, are all its voting members Code-compliant? Or does the EFI believe that such members are exempt from National Sports Development Code of India, 2011?
The High Court of Delhi Judgement on August 16, 2022, held the view that the Sports Code must be made applicable to every constituent of every NSF, including IOA as well as its constituents. In his concurring opinion with Justice Najmi Waziri’s judgement of August 16, 2022, Justice Manmohan directed Government not to grant recognition or any facility (monetary or otherwise) to the IOA or to any NSF and/or any of its affiliated Associations, if they refuse to comply with the Sports Code as directed by this Court.
In its affidavit submitted to the High Court of Delhi on October 3, 2012, Government confirmed that the Guidelines are binding on the National Sports Federations recognised by this Ministry. “As a matter of Basic Practices, including restrictions on age and tenure as mandated in the Olympic Charter, what is good for the parent NSF’s, including IOA, should also be good for their Members State/District level Federations and/or Associations,” it declared.
Composition of Electoral College, the focal point
Since 2019, the High Court of Delhi has been hearing a petition by the Rajasthan Equestrian Association against, among things, the composition of the Equestrian Federation of India’ Electoral College. REA’s contention is that only State and Union Territories’ Associations could be voting members while EFI included individuals, clubs and units also in its electoral college.
The focus of arguments changed after November 2021 when the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports exempted EFI from complying with two critical clauses of the National Sports Development Code of India, 2011. It allowed EFI to have fewer member State Associations than the two-thirds as ordained by the Code and to include clubs and individual as voting members.
Be that as it may, on April 11, 2023, when Justice Tushar Rao Gedela directed EFI to conduct its elections, he allowed recognised State/Union Territory Associations to be part of the electoral college and devised a formula for club/unit members in other States/Union Territories to have only a proportionate share in the electoral college.
EFI preferred an appeal on May 8, 2023, before a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court. Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad stayed Justice Tushar Rao Gedela’s ruling and requested the Single Judge to hear the matter expeditiously to decide whether the exemption granted was correct.
Horses: Athletes or Equipment?
Interestingly, in 2013, the Ministry had told the Indian Golf Union to have an electoral college consisting of only State Associations and to treat clubs across the country as district units of State Associations. Nobody has understood why a different logic was applied when it came to EFI, though the Federation has claimed it administers a peculiar sport as horses are involved.
It seems lost to everyone that the Code considers horses as equipment (and not as an athlete). “Horses along with their diet for equestrian events and boats/yachts etc. shall be treated as equipment for reimbursement of hiring/transportation,” the Code says. The International Equestrian Federation lists athletes and horses separately and does not call them equine athletes.
Since Government restricts the inclusion of athletes in the National teams to Indian nationals only – “Only Indian nationals are eligible to be a part of the Indian team and walk under the Indian flag” – it can be deduced that the horses that played a part in the Jakarta 2018 Asian Games and Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games last year were equipment and not athletes.
The EFI is only using delay tactics in the legal system to avoid getting a judgement. As per the MYAS exemption letter it states that this exemption is only till the EFI grants affiliation to 2/3 States, who are waiting g for recognition and affiliation.