Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, June 11

Away from the media glare, Banita Joshi and another sportswomen in Punjab, too, have a grievance. A national-level netball participant representing the state of Punjab, Joshi gained a silver medal within the thirty sixth National Games organised by the Indian Olympic Association in September-October 2022. But she and one other participant have moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court, claiming that they’ve been wrongly denied the sports activities gradation certificates.

Counsel phrases transfer unlawful

Counsel for the gamers mentioned the certificates was illegally denied on the bottom that the ‘Netball Promotion Association’, beneath whose banner the petitioner performed, was not recognised by the Punjab Olympic Association

Taking up the petitions filed by Joshi and Aksh Sharma, Justice Vinod S Bhardwaj has put the state of Punjab and one other respondent on discover after recording their counsel’s competition that the “issue in question” was coated by the excessive court docket judgment dated February 15 within the case of ‘Piyusha Modi versus the state of Punjab and others”. Justice Bhardwaj also fixed the case for further hearing on August 31.

Their counsel Ritesh Aggarwal, among other things, contended that the HC had categorically held that denial of sports gradation certificate to a sportsperson in any discipline could not be the object of the “sports gradation policy”, which intended to recognise a sportsperson’s contribution.

Going into the background of the matter in Joshi’s petition, the counsel submitted the petitioner approached the respondent authorities for the issuance of the gradation certificates after the nationwide video games. But the respondent authorities refused to even settle for the applying.

The counsel added that the certificates was illegally denied on the bottom that the “Netball Promotion Association”, beneath whose banner the petitioner performed, was not recognised by the Punjab Olympic Association.

He added that the denial was on fully frivolous grounds primarily based upon a round dated December 24, 1997, issued by Director, Sports, Punjab, as per which the certificates issued by a sports activities affiliation can be thought-about for gradation provided that it was recognised by the Punjab Olympic Association

The counsel mentioned the petitioner couldn’t be denied the profit beneath the sports activities gradation coverage, even when for the sake of argument it was admitted that the Netball Promotion Association (regd) was not recognised by the Punjab Olympic Association.

“It would lead to a situation wherein none of the netball associations in the state of Punjab have valid recognition and affiliation and eventually sportspersons like the petitioner would be robbed of all the chances of participation in national/international events without any fault on their part and further would be denied the benefit granted by the state of Punjab by way of reservation in the civil service posts,” it was added.