Punjab and Haryana High Court Rejects Paralympian Vinod Kumar’s Plea for Rs 4 Crore Reward
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has dismissed a petition filed by para-athlete Vinod Kumar, who sought financial benefits equivalent to the Rs 4 crore reward granted to wrestler Vinesh Phogat. Kumar argued for parity, noting that both athletes had their medals withdrawn—Kumar’s bronze from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics and Phogat’s silver from the Paris 2024 Olympics—yet Phogat received full winner benefits. Justice Jagmohan Bansal rejected the plea, emphasizing that Kumar had already received Rs 50 lakh as a special case, significantly higher than the standard Rs 15 lakh participant award, despite his disqualification. The court highlighted that Phogat’s case occurred four years later under different circumstances and that accepting Kumar’s claim would set an unsustainable precedent for future parity claims across different sporting events and timelines. The judgment reinforces the state government's discretion in treating individual cases differently based on specific contexts and policy limits, denying Kumar's request to be treated as a medal winner comparable to Phogat.
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Punjab and Haryana High Court Rejects Paralympian Vinod Kumar’s Plea for Rs 4 Crore Reward
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has dismissed a petition filed by para-athlete Vinod Kumar, who sought financial benefits equivalent to the Rs 4 crore reward granted to wrestler Vinesh Phogat. Kumar argued for parity, noting that both athletes had their medals withdrawn—Kumar’s bronze from the Tokyo 2020 Paralympics and Phogat’s silver from the Paris 2024 Olympics—yet Phogat received full winner benefits. Justice Jagmohan Bansal rejected the plea, emphasizing that Kumar had already received Rs 50 lakh as a special case, significantly higher than the standard Rs 15 lakh participant award, despite his disqualification. The court highlighted that Phogat’s case occurred four years later under different circumstances and that accepting Kumar’s claim would set an unsustainable precedent for future parity claims across different sporting events and timelines. The judgment reinforces the state government's discretion in treating individual cases differently based on specific contexts and policy limits, denying Kumar's request to be treated as a medal winner comparable to Phogat.
The Indian Express