 For the first time in the history of Kabaddi at the Asian Games, India's men's and women's team did not win gold. Back in Delhi, a group of petitioners led by C. Honapa Gowda and S. Rajaratnam, both former internationals, filed a case against the immature Kabaddi Federation of India, alleging among other things, corruption, failure to follow the guidelines of the National Sports Court and an opaque selection process. On August 3rd, the Delhi High Court removed Mridul Bhadoria Gehlot as president of the AKFI and declared her election invalid. Mridul is the wife of Janardhan Singh Gehlot, who was president of AKFI for 28 years before he was removed from the position in 2013 based on the Sports Court. Retired High Court Justice S.P. Garg is now the court-appointed administrator for the Kabaddi Federation. His job is to ensure that the Federation follows the rules, starting with ensuring free and fair elections to the body running the sport. At the K.D. Jadav wrestling stadium in New Delhi, on September 15th, another part of the Kabaddi soap opera was supposed to play out, two unprecedented matches between the teams that represented India at the ASEAD and the team selected by a court-appointed committee. And what happened, however, was nothing like the dramatic showdown that those assembled had expected. The teams that went to the Asian Games were not at the venue. And the AKFI officials, though they declined to speak on camera, told us they were following the court's order by selecting a team based on an open trial. That would then play against the senior national teams if required. The letter of the law, open as it is to interpretation and representation, may have been followed, but it was clear the so-called open trial was just a farce. Meanwhile, a rival body, called the New Kabaddi Federation of India, paraded teams on the other side of the wrestling hall. They claimed to have conducted an open trial and a 20-day camp, and said they were ready to face the national squad. Retired Delhi High Court judge Justice S.P. Garg, appointed interim administrator of the AKFI, was on hand to watch the farcical goings-on. He said he would present his observations to the court at the next hearing. For those of us at the venue on September 15, though, the observations were clear. On the one hand, the Pro Kabaddi League is beaming the rural spot into millions of homes, proving both popular and lucrative. On the other, politicians and administrators continue to devote their energies to playing petty politics in desperate attempts to retain some control over the sport and benefit from this newfound popularity. For Gowda, this is the ultimate insult.