The Pakistan Sports Board (PSB) has overturned a lifetime ban imposed on prominent athletics coach Salman Iqbal Butt, mentor of Olympic gold medalist Arshad Nadeem, restoring his professional status.
The ruling, issued by Senator Pervaiz Rashid in his capacity as an adjudicator for the PSB, declared the ban imposed by the Athletics Federation of Pakistan (AFP) “without lawful authority, unconstitutional, ultra vires, and void ab initio,” meaning it was invalid from the outset.
The AFP had imposed the ban on October 12, 2025, but Butt challenged it, arguing it was issued without jurisdiction, due process, or a legal basis.
Following detailed proceedings, the adjudicator sided with Butt in a final order dated November 13, 2025.
“The lifetime ban has no legal effect and is declared void,” the order stated.
It instructed the AFP to “immediately withdraw all adverse communications” sent to international bodies such as World Athletics and Asian Athletics, which had damaged Butt’s global standing.
The federation is also restrained from issuing any future “defamatory or prejudicial communications” against him.
The adjudicator cited multiple legal and procedural lapses in the AFP’s actions. No formal charge sheet was issued to Butt, no inquiry report was provided, and he was denied a meaningful right to a hearing or defense.
“A penalty imposed in violation of due process is void ab initio,” the order read, citing violations of Articles 4, 10-A, and 25 of the Constitution of Pakistan. It also noted that a lifetime ban was “ultra vires, excessive, and unsupported by any constitutional authority” under AFP rules.
The case also involved a dispute over the Punjab Athletics Association elections, which the AFP had declared null and void.
The adjudicator ruled that the AFP had no jurisdiction over the matter, as the PAA is a provincial body whose elections are supervised by the Punjab Sports Board and the Punjab Olympic Association.
Nominated officials observed the elections, and no objections were raised at the time.
The ruling highlighted the ban’s negative impact on Pakistan’s elite athletics program. Butt has coached Arshad Nadeem for years, including during his historic performance at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The adjudicator noted that the AFP’s actions “disrupted Pakistan’s high-performance athletes’ preparations, created uncertainty for a leading Olympic athlete, damaged national medal prospects, and risked reputational harm internationally.”
The record included a written endorsement from Nadeem himself supporting Butt and opposing the ban.
The PSB’s legal advisor, Saif ur Rehman Rao, assisted during the proceedings, while the AFP was represented by its president, Brig. (R) Wajahat Hussain, and advocate Usman Akram.
The adjudicator overruled the AFP’s objection regarding the petition’s maintainability, affirming his full jurisdiction under the PSB Constitution.
