In a letters patent appeal filed before the Delhi High Court against an order dated 29-05-2026 by a Single Judge to the extent that no urgent protective direction was issued despite the fact that the matter was time sensitive, that the respondents had made a statement that no names had been forwarded for Karate in the 2026 Asian Games, and that the relevant deadline had expired, a Division Bench of Justice Tejas Karia and Justice Madhu Jain dismissed the appeal while observing the adverse effects on athletes due to a lack of a National Sports Federation for Karate in India.
The appellant was an Indian Karate Athlete, who had filed a writ petition seeking directions for a fair, transparent, time-bound, and internationally compliant selection mechanism for Indian Karate athletes for the Asian games and the 22nd Asian Senior Karate Championship. The appellant’s grievance was that the Indian Karate athletes were once again being deprived of a fair opportunity for consideration for the Asian Games due to administrative inaction, unresolved governance issues in Karate, and the absence of a recognised National Sports Federation (NSF).
It was submitted that to prevent prejudice, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (Ministry) issued an order dated 23-02-2026 concerning the sport of Karate. By the said order, respondent 2 was requested to constitute a transitory/Ad Hoc Committee to oversee and manage the affairs of Karate, including selection of athletes and the submission of entries for participation of sportspersons in international events, until a suitable federation is recognised as the NSF. However, no such committee was formed.
By an order dated 19-05-2026 passed in the writ petition, the respondents were directed to look into the appellant’s grievance and to make an endeavour to provide a mechanism for selection of international entries for Karate. However, it was asserted that no mechanism was made and that names of India’s participants for the 22nd Asian Senior Karate Championship appeared on the WKF online portal without any public notice, selection criteria, etc.
Thereafter, the appellant filed an application in the writ petition, seeking urgent interim directions as well as a direction to the respondents to formulate and notify a fair selection process for Karate before the entry period for Asian Games is closed. In the said application, no urgent protective direction was passed and the matter was listed on 06-07-2026.
The Court perused letters dated 26-02-2026 and 27-02-2026 and found that respondent 2 acted pursuant to the Ministry’s order and addressed a communication to the WKF seeking constitution of an Ad Hoc Committee, but WKF opposed the same. Hence, the Court held that respondent 2 had made best efforts for such a committee. Further, the Court noted that the respondents’ statement recorded in the impugned order was that no names of players had been forwarded for the Asian Games. The Court held that the present appeal was not maintainable since the impugned order did not constitute a judgment appealable under Clause 10 of the Letters Patent.
However, the Court observed that the absence of a recognised NSF for Karate was detrimental to the development of Karate in India since athletes stand deprived of opportunities to participate in international events. It was stated that the athletes’ interests must remain paramount and that their opportunities cannot be permitted to be compromised due to disputes, regulatory uncertainty, or administrative failure.
Thus, the Court asked the respondents to address the appellant’s grievance and to provide an appropriate mechanism for selection and international entries in Karate until a duly recognized NSF is constituted in India in terms of the direction issued by the Single Judge in the impugned order. Thus, the appeal was dismissed.
