Wrestlers Rajeev Tomar and Mausam Khatri's two-year suspension imposed by the National Anti-Doping Disciplinary Panel (NADP) for flunking a dope Test just before the 2010 Commonwealth Games has been revoked nine months before the end of the term by the appellate body of the NADA.
The NADA appellate body revoked the suspension early citing "delays in the proceedings" of the earlier panel.
2008 Beijing Olympian Tomar and 2010 Asian Games bronze medallist Khatri can now return to action with immediate effect.
Tomar and Khatri were among the 11 Indian athletes, who flunked dope tests for stimulant Methylhexaneamine just before the Delhi CWG. They were provisionally suspended on September 1, 2010 and after a lengthy hearing process and were handed two-year bans on November 5, 2012 by the NADP. The two-year ban was to expire on November 4, 2014.
On appeal by the wrestlers, the National Anti-Doping Appeals Panel (NAAP), headed by Justice M L Varma, found that there were "314 days of delay in the proceedings before the Disciplinary Panel not attributable to the athletes".
The causes of delays mentioned in the order passed on February 11 include unavailability of stenographer, non-availability of NADA counsel, of athlete himself for marriage, of a panel member and of an NDTL doctor, among others.
