New Delhi [India] May 15 (ANI): President All India Pickleball Association (AIPA), Arvind Prabhoo, highlighted that the Delhi High Court has instructed Ministry of Youth and Sports to provide a written explanation justifying the status of National Sports Federation (NSF) to the Indian Pickleball Association (IPA).

AIPA strongly opposed the Sports Ministry's decision to grant National Sports Federation (NSF) status to the Indian Pickleball Association (IPA), as communicated in a letter dated April 25, as per the AIPA press release.

AIPA believed this action appeared to have been influenced by undue lobbying and misleading representations made by the newly formed entity. Granting NSF status to an organisation formed in November 2024 -- bypassing AIPA's 18 years of contribution.

While talking to the ANI Arvind Prabhoo President AIPA said,' We challenged it in the court and the honourable court has directed the Ministry of Youth and Sports to furnish under an affidavit the justification for giving relaxation you know they have offered relaxation to this Indian Pickleball Association so the court has asked justification of that. And that is what we are hearing on the 19th, that is coming Monday.'

AIPA last Sunday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, highlighting the ongoing injustice regarding the sport of Pickleball and its recognition being overlooked for the last 18 years by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS).

'We have sent it, we are requesting an opinion from the Honorable PM, PMO to look into this matter because according to us it draws injustice for us and all India Pickleball Association, and we are requesting them to intervene in this matter and get to the bottom of this,' Arvind Prabhoo said.

Established in 2007, the All India Pickleball Association (AIPA) is the oldest and most widely represented governing body for pickleball in India, with active federations in 24 states. AIPA has played a pivotal role in the structured growth of the sport for nearly two decades and is also a founding member of both the International Pickleball Federation (IPF) and the Asian Pickleball Federation (APF), with official affiliations granted in 2015 and 2020, respectively, as per a press release from AIPA.

AIPA pointed out that the recognition granted to IPA by the Sports Ministry has been made after relaxing key eligibility conditions outlined in the National Sports Development Code of India, 2011, including:

--- Requirement of a minimum three-year existence: As per Para 3.3 of Annexure-II of the Sports Code 2011, a sports federation must be in existence and functioning for at least three years before it can be considered for recognition as an NSF. The IPA was incorporated in November 2024 and has therefore not met this minimum eligibility.

--- Requirement of state-level representation: The Sports Code mandates that a State/UT unit of a federation must be affiliated with at least 50% of the district-level associations in that region to be considered valid. There is no verifiable evidence that IPA or its state units meet this criterion.AIPA remains committed to the values of fair play, sportsmanship, and clean sports governance and calls upon the Ministry to immediately review and rectify the decision in the larger interest of Pickleball and the Indian sporting community. (ANI)