It appears just like the Indian Pickleball Affiliation (IPA) will proceed because the nationwide sports activities federation (NSF) of pickleball in India. That is after the Delhi Excessive Courtroom upheld the Centre’s earlier determination to recognise the IPA because the nation’s NSF, noting that such a willpower was made by what the court docket deemed a site professional.
The Sports activities Ministry had beforehand recognised the IPA as India’s NSF on 25 April 2025. This recognition made the group, which at the moment had been in existence for less than six months, eligible for monetary help from the federal government. It was additionally granted autonomy to manage, promote, and develop the game on the nationwide degree.
The All India Pickleball Affiliation (AIPA), which predates the IPA by a number of years, opposed the popularity, appropriately claiming that it has been selling pickleball in India for over a decade already. The AIPA additionally alleged that the ministry violated the Nationwide Sports activities Growth Code by recognising an organisation that was solely 138 days previous on the time of recognition.
However, in rejecting the AIPA’s attraction, Justice Sachin Datta identified that the court docket doesn’t need to intrude with the Ministry’s earlier proclamation, as it’s the professional in such issues. Datta additionally famous that it’s not throughout the court docket’s jurisdiction to sit down in attraction over this dispute.
In its judgment dated 2 February 2026, the court docket held that the popularity beforehand granted to the IPA couldn’t be termed ex facie arbitrary or manifestly unreasonable.
“Within the circumstances, this court docket finds no advantage within the current petition; the identical is, accordingly, dismissed,” Datta mentioned.
Indian Pickleball Affiliation Obtained Concessions from Sports activities Ministry
In recognising the Indian Picklenball Affiliation, the Sports activities Ministry exempted it from sure necessities below the Sports activities Code, notably the supply of getting a minimal prior existence of three years on the time of making use of for recognition, in addition to the requirement of getting 50 per cent district models affiliated with state or Union Territory associations.
Whereas taking these provisions into consideration, the Excessive Courtroom famous that the Sports activities Code additionally had provisions to loosen up the circumstances contained therein in acceptable circumstances. What’s extra, the Excessive Courtroom identified that the Sports activities Code was non-statutory in nature and, subsequently, couldn’t be handled as inflexible or incapable of accommodating exemptions, notably for rising sports activities.
“Nascent or rising sports activities equivalent to pickleball can’t be handled on par with legacy or established sports activities,” the court docket emphasised. “It can’t be overpassed the truth that there are various provisions of the Sports activities Code that are required to be utilized within the context of a specific sport and with due sensitivity to the developmental stage of the game involved.”
With the choice, it’s trying just like the IPA can proceed to fulfil its mandate because the ministry’s duly recognised NSF for pickleball. The AIPA, then again, won’t have every other recourse however to just accept the Excessive Courtroom’s ruling.
