Vinesh Phogat Appeal: Harish Salve's Record Keeps Ace Wrestler's Hopes High For Olympic Medal

Vinesh Phogat Olympic Disqualification: Photat's hopes of getting an Olympic silver medal rest on the shoulders of top lawyer Harish Salve, who has won many high-profile cases in the past.

Vinesh Phogat Olympic Disqualification: Senior counsel Harish Salve will represent Wrestler Vinesh Phogat’s appeal to be awarded the silver medal in the Women’s Wrestling 50 kg competition in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games before the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) ad-hoc division at 2 pm (local time).

The Indian Olympic Association is assisting Vinesh with her appeal after she was disqualified from the competition for being 100gms over the stipulated 50 kg on the second day of her competition. She had made the weight on the first day and won three bouts on her way to the final, including her stunning win over the defending champion Yui Susaki of Japan.

Following her disqualification, Vinesh Phogat made two appeals—one was to allow her to appear for the final bout, and the other one demanded a joint silver medal with Cuban wrestler Yusneylis Guzman Lopez. While her first appeal was rejected, the CAS accepted her second appeal.

Salve was also the Solicitor General of India from 1999 to 2002. He has represented many top corporations and the government in several high-profile cases. He is frequently seen representing corporates like the Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries, Tata Group, and ITC Limited. 

Take A Look At Some Major Cases Fought By Harish Salve

Kulbhushan Jadhav case: Harish Salve represented India before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in a case pertaining to the abduction of Indian businessman Kulbhushan Yadav. In 2016, Yadav was abducted from the Iran-Pakistan border. He was accused of being a spy, and a military court sentenced him to death.

In 2017, Harish Salve’s strong arguments before the International Court led to a provisional stay order on Jadhav's death sentence. The top lawyer charged only Re 1 as his legal fee.

Ram Temple Dispute: In the Ram Janmabhoomi dispute, Salve was also among the lawyers who represented the Hindu side. In 2019, the Supreme Court ordered the construction of a Ram Temple at the disputed Ayodhya site, which brought down curtains on one of the longest cases in India’s history. 

Tata Sons vs. Cyrus Mistry: In 2016, Harish Salve represented Tata Sons in the Supreme Court. His legal strategy and the arguments made by him ensured the top court upheld the Tata Group's decision to remove Cyrus Mistry as executive chairperson of Tata Sons.

Vodafone Tax Dispute: In 2012, Salve registered a significant victory in a Rs 1,1000 crore tax case for Vodafone against the government. In this case, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Vodafone and exempted it from paying a large tax demand. 

Salman Khan hit-and-run case: The high profile hit-and-run case of Bollywood actor Salman Khan has always grabbed everyone’s attention. Salve took up the case in 2015. With his efforts, the Bombay High Court suspended the session court decision. On December 10, 2015, the High Court acquitted the ‘Wanted’ actor of all charges in the 2002 hit-and-run and drunk-and-drive case.