HC declines athlete's plea seeking amendment in award rules

The Delhi High Court today declined to hear a plea seeking quashing of a rule which is coming in the way of an international athlete from being conferred the Rajiv Gandhi State Sports Award.
Justice Vibhu Bakhru directed the petitioner, powerlifter Puran Singh Kadyan, to withdraw his plea observing that the rule was amended prior to his request for being recommended for the award.
The facts, informed by the Delhi government to the court, prohibited Kadyan from challenging the amendment made in 2011, the bench said.
"There is no point of entertaining the petition as the award has already been conferred to eligible candidates in 2013. The rule was also amended before the petitioner filed this litigation," Delhi government's standing counsel Zubeda Begum told the court, adding that he has come almost after a year.

If he (athlete) was having any grievances, he should have come at that very moment, the standing counsel said.
Sensing the mood of the court, the athlete, through his counsel wished to withdraw the plea, which was allowed by the judge.
Yesterday, the court had asked the Delhi government to inform it about the rule which was coming in its way to recommend Kadyan, based in the national capital, for Rajiv Gandhi State Sports Award.
Kadyan had complained that an amendment in Rule 6 of the award that a sports person born in Delhi would only be eligible for the recognition, has deprived him from being recommended for the prestigious award by the state.