The IKF imposed a ban on the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI), last year after the elected body was not allowed to take charge
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Indian kabaddi players will heave a sigh of relief as the international governing body of the sport is set to lift the suspension imposed on the national federation.
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In an interview with news agency PTI, International Kabaddi Federation (IKF) President Vinod Kumar Tiwari confirmed the development, adding that an executive council meeting is scheduled to be held next month.
"The court-appointed administrator has handed over charge to the AKFI office bearers who were elected in December 2023. The AKFI office bearers have now started functioning from the AKFI office at JLN Stadium," Tiwari said in the interview.
"So, the ban on AKFI will be lifted. We will have our executive board meeting (of the IKF) next month, and the ban will be officially lifted."
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For context, the IKF imposed a ban on the Amateur Kabaddi Federation of India (AKFI) last year after the newly elected body was not allowed to take charge.
On February 6, the AKFI administrator, Justice (Retd.) S. P. Garg, was directed to hand over control of the national federation to the office bearers. However, the court clarified that this order did not imply recognition of the elected body but was intended to ensure that Indian players could participate in the Senior Asian Kabaddi Championship 2025, scheduled to be held in Iran from February 20 to 25.
The court's order followed a petition by two national kabaddi players, Priyanka and Pooja, who sought direction for the AKFI to send them to the Asian Kabaddi Championship in Iran. However, Tiwari clarified that the IKF had already permitted Indian players to participate in the tournament.
Last week, the IKF declared that the Kabaddi World Cup held in London was not an authorised event and instructed the AKFI to take action against the team that participated in the tournament.
The Kabaddi World Cup 2025 is set to be held in the West Midlands from March 17 to 23. The tournament is being organized by the England Kabaddi Association and the British Kabaddi League (BKL) under the World Kabaddi Federation (WKF), a parallel international governing body of the sport.
(With PTI Inputs)
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