Sports Code: Exemptions Granted to EFI Held Arbitrary

In a decision dated January 7, 2025, the Delhi High Court held the exemptions granted by Respondent No.1, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, to Respondent No.2, the Equestrian Federation of India (EFI), from the applicability of specific provisions of the National Sports Development Code, 2011 (Sports Code) to be arbitrary.[1]

The Rajasthan Equestrian Association (the petitioner herein) challenged:

• Notification dated February 1, 2021, issued by the Ministry introducing a ‘Relaxation Clause’ in the Sports Code and
• Order dated November 9, 2021, issued by the Ministry under the said ‘Relaxation Clause’ granting specific exemptions to EFI from the applicability of the Sports Code.

The Relaxation Clause, whose incorporation was a policy decision, was held to be “neither arbitrary nor unreasonable.” The mechanism of granting exemptions in exceptional circumstances sought to address practical difficulties in implementing the Sports Code, and the Clause itself had sufficient safeguards preventing its misuse. Consequently, the challenge to the impugned notification failed.

Regarding the impugned order, the Court observed that though Equestrian sports were capital-intensive and required specialised infrastructure and medical facilities for horses, these factors had no direct bearing on the exemptions granted.

The provisions of the Sports Code, stipulating that membership and voting rights in the national sports federations had to be restricted to state or UT associations, which in turn were required to have a minimum 50% affiliation with district-level associations, ensured that sports governance remained inclusive, equitable, and representative of the broader sporting community. In view of this, the exemptions granted to EFI undermined the representative pyramidical structure envisaged under the Sports Code by permitting club memberships and voting rights.

The Court also took note of the petitioner’s submissions that the EFI reduced the number of state associations over the years and granted memberships to clubs situated in areas effectively under the Army’s influence. As to the argument concerning the lack of infrastructure requirements at the state level, it was observed that the EFI itself lacked the necessary facilities. Equestrian championships in India were hosted at privately owned venues without any support from the EFI. The EFI was required to seek the assistance of the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to address the issues of infrastructure and equipment. The Ministry was also pulled up for not carrying out a fact-finding exercise to verify the averments of EFI before the impugned exemptions were granted.

The exemptions provided under the impugned order were deemed to be arbitrary. Yet, with a view to prevent a governance vacuum, the Court ordered the exemptions to remain operational as an interim measure. Further, the Court constituted a committee to carry out a fact-finding exercise and investigate the ground-level realities of Equestrian sports in the country. Based on the committee’s report, the Ministry would be required to make a reasoned decision on the continuation, modification, or withdrawal of the exemptions within four weeks of the report’s receipt.

[1] Rajasthan Equestrian Association v. Union of India and Ors. [WP(C) No. 5989/2022]