Narsingh Saga: NADA vs.WADA

Arjun J Chaudhuri

Rio Olympics 2016 bound-wrestler, Narsingh Yadav had been granted let-off by the Judicial-Panel of NADA on leading evidence submitted by NADA of positive Test-Result for Steroids which was NADA-conducted prior to the athlete leaving for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. That the let-off is based on the legal-ground u/Article 10.4 of NADA’s Anti-Doping Code that since it is one-time finding on the part of NADA which has previously conducted prior-tests with negative-results to show for it. That therefore it may be considered the exception to the rule, and led the Judicial-Panel of NADA to believe the Final-Arguments tendered by Counsel for Narsingh Yadav that Steroids may have been administered without the knowledge of the Wrestler by vested-interests who wish his rival to replace him at Rio-Olympics 2016. Although it may be both defamatory or slanderous to make such statements when such statements are targeted at specific-individual that is made without evidential-basis outside the Court, and is punishable u/legal-provisions of IPC 1860, the same however, is not true when legal-precedents are cited about such unlawful-administrations by rival-interests or Federation-Officials advancing national-interests which is what the Russian-federation is accused of presently that WADA has taken action against, and enforced  collective-ban on them from international-competition.

That contact sports in India are today backed by political-interests, that it is not too far-fetched to accuse the unnamed third-party of collusion to cause damage or injury to the opponent when Medals won at the Olympics translate into monetary, and in-kind benefits along with administrative, and political career-advancements of all connected to the medal-winner.

Narsingh Yadav always maintained before NADA and the Press that the failed-test for doping was the result of the collusion by his opponents to prevent him from participating at the Rio Olympic Games 2016.

That the Judicial-Panel of NADA, reviewing Narsingh Yadav’s Case, in its ruling stated that Narsingh Yadav is the victim of sabotage, and that there is no-fault & negligence on his part. That the same is read-out by NADA DG Naveen Agarwal while reading out the verdict before the Press keeping in mind that till June 2, 2016 none of his samples tested-positive. It was inconceivable that one-time ingestion would be of benefit to Narsingh Yadav, and therefore that that basis the Judicial-Panel of NADA ruled-out Intent on the part of Narsingh Yadav to consciously ingest the Steroid to gain undue-advantage.

That based on this finding Narsingh Yadav had been reinstated for Olympics competition representing India at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. But the WADA had appealed against the NADA all-clear to Narsingh at CAS, three days ahead of his bout.As a result  CAS had handed Narsingh a four-year ban on August 18 barely hours before his 74kg freestyle opening bout was scheduled. While handing down a four-year ban on Narsingh Yadav, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has ruled that the wrestler failed to produce any "real evidence" regarding the sabotage theory he had advanced and the balance of probabilities" was that he orally took the banned substance intentionally in tablet form on more than one occasion.