High Court- Sports Ministry to follow its rules on Sports Awards

In the writ petition filed by IPS officer Amitabh Thakur and social activist Dr Nutan Thakur challenging the recommendations of Virat Kohli for Arjuna Awards and Sunil Gavaskar for Dhyan Chand award by BCCI, the Allahabad High Court, Lucknow Bench has directed the Sports Ministry to follow its rules framed in this regards.

The Bench of Justice Devi Prasad Singh and Justice Ashok Pal Singh disposed of the petition saying that the Ministry was bound by its own rules framed for Sports awards and cannot violate it.

The petitioners’ counsel Asok Pande had argued that only National Sports Federation (NSF) can make recommendations for the national sports awards. BCCI is not one of the 51 NSFs recognized by the Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs, but is a completely unrecognized private body which cannot make such recommendations