By News18
New Delhi, Jul 7 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the ongoing process for selecting a weightlifting coach under the Sports Authority of Goa after a woman candidate alleged bias.
A bench of Justices Pankaj Mithal and K V Viswanathan also issued notices to the sports body and others on the plea of the woman candidate contesting for the post.
She challenged the integrity of the selection process saying her former coach, against whom she had previously filed a harassment complaint, was one of the examiners in the recruitment process.
鈥淧ermission to file the special leave petition,鈥 the bench said, 鈥渋s granted鈥 Issue notice, returnable within six weeks. In the meantime, the order impugned dated June 23, 2025 passed by the high court shall remain stayed.鈥 Advocate Salvador Santosh Rebello, representing the petitioner, said the presence of the former coach as an examiner compromised the fairness of the selection, citing personal bias and past misconduct.
Rebello submitted that the Goa government, upon receiving her representation, acknowledged the issue and decided to re-conduct the physical and skill tests with independent evaluators.
The Bombay High Court, however, overturned the decision without hearing the petitioner and directed that the written test proceed as originally scheduled.
The recruitment, advertised in February 2024, involved a three-stage process and it contained a physical fitness test, a practical test, and a written examination.
Both the petitioner and another woman cleared the physical test but the petitioner suffered bias and her rival received undue advantage, the plea said.
鈥淭he tests were recorded and videographed,鈥 it added.
She claimed that a proper review would reveal bias and procedural violations.
In the subsequent skill test, the petitioner was awarded 17.5 per cent marks, which was below the qualifying threshold, whereas her rival scored 23.5 per cent and advanced, the plea said. PTI SJK SJK AMK AMK