Championing Inclusion: Understanding & Uprooting The Deep-Rooted Gender Inequality In Indian Sports
- IJLLR Journal
- Dec 14, 2025
- 1 min read
Snehansu Ray, LLB (Hons.), Government Centre of Legal Education, University of Burdwan
ABSTRACT
The pervasive gender inequality embedded within Indian sports is a structural issue. Its historical evolution can be traced from ancient times through the Victorian era to the present day. Despite recent gains and occasional success stories, female athletes in India continue to face barriers such as wage disparities, limited opportunities, and sexual harassment. Gender-based discrimination manifests across multiple dimensions: women receive significantly lower pay than their male counterparts, struggle with inadequate representation in competitions, and remain vulnerable to exploitation within sports organizations. There is lack of awareness regarding representation of women in sports and the media is also less interested in covering it. While India's existing legal framework including Constitutional provisions, the POSH Act, and the National Sports Development Code provides some protection, the absence of sports-specific legislation creates significant regulatory gaps. International best practices and successful interventions like Title IX in the United States and gender equality initiatives across European Union have highlighted the best possible practices in the present time. A comprehensive strategy encompassing legislative reform, increased female representation in sports governance, stronger implementation mechanisms, and grassroots development programs, can help in creating a path towards a more equitable sports ecosystem in India. There is a need for collective action across institutional and individual levels to eliminate the deeply entrenched structural biases that have historically disadvantaged women in Indian sports.
