Top 11 Indian athletes who were banned for doping

A look at top Indian athletes in athletics and other sports banned for doping violations.

India is steadily rising as a multi-sport nation with launch and continuation of leagues across multiple sports including Table Tennis, Badminton, Kabaddi and Volleyball among others, despite being a cricket-dominated nation. However, Doping remains a serious issue that continues to affect Indian sports.

According to data released by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) in 2022, India ranked as the biggest offender in doping, with 3.26 percent of the sample size (127 out of 4,064 samples) testing positive for prohibited substances. With that, let’s look at the top 10 athletes who have been banned for doping:

Indian athletes who were banned for doping

11) Reetika Hooda

Paris Olympian and Asian Championships silver medallist Reetika Hooda was “provisionally suspended” for a year over doping violation by the National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) on July 7, 2025.

The violation was reported during selection trials at the Indira Gandhi Stadium after her urine sample found traces of S1.1 Anabolic Androgenic Steroids, a prohibited substance.

10) Aishwarya Babu (Athletics, Triple Jump)

Triple jumper Aishwarya Babu is currently serving a four-year ban after testing positive during a drug test conducted at the Inter-State Athletics Championships in Chennai on June 13-14, 2022. According to her, she took Ostarine for pain management. However, Ostarine is actually a prohibited substance used to enhance muscle strength, not for pain relief.

Also Read: Top 11 footballers who were banned for doping

9) Shailaja Pujari (Weightlifting)

Three-time Commonwealth Games gold medalist, Shailaja Pujari, received a life-time ban after multiple doping offenses during her competitive career. Additionally, she also was imposed a fine of $5000 by the International Weightlifting Federation.

8) Shivpal Singh (Athletics, Javelin Throw)

Shivpal Singh, an Asian Championships and South Asian Games medalist, tested positive for metandieonone in a 2021 drug test and was banned for four years by NADA in 2022. But, the athlete later convinced the Appeal Panel that contaminated supplements caused the result and his ban was reduced to just one year.

However, in May 2025, he again tested positive for a prohibited substance during an out-of-competition test. If found guilty, Singh could face a ban of up to eight years, which would effectively end his career.

7) MR Poovamma (Athletics, 400m & Relay)

MR Poovamma, a three-time Asian Games gold medalist, was banned for testing positive for methylhexaneamine, a performance enhancing drug under WADA. Following this, her suspension began from February 2021 and ended in 2023.

She was back to participating competitions in July 2023 at the Sri Lankan Championships. Additionally, she was one of the members of India’s squad for the Paris Olympics 2024, representing the team in the women’s 4x400m relay.

6) Khumukcham Sanjita Chanu (Weightlifting)

Two-time Commonwealth Games gold medalist Sanjita Chanu received a four-year ban after her sample, taken during the 2022 National Games, tested positive for drostanolone, a substance on the prohibited list. While medically used to treat breast cancer, drostanolone is also misused by athletes as a performance-enhancing drug.

5) Narsingh Yadav (Wrestling)

Narsingh Yadav was banned for four years after testing positive for a banned substance. He claimed his food had been spiked, which led to the positive result.

Although India’s Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) initially cleared him, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) sided with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and imposed the ban. The 2015 World Championships bronze medalist was then replaced by Parveen Rana at the Rio Games.

4) Kamalpreet Kaur (Athletics, Discus Throw)

Discus thrower Kamalpreet Kaur, who rose to fame after qualifying for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics final and finishing sixth, was banned from competitions after testing positive for stanozolol, a substance prohibited under the WADA list.

Although she initially denied the presence of the substance in her body, she later accepted the violation, which resulted in her ban being reduced from four to three years. Notably, her ban began on March 29, 2022.

3) Amit Panghal (Boxing)

Olympian Amit Panghal tested positive for a banned substance in 2012 during his youth competitive days. Although he initially received a two-year suspension, it was then reduced to one year after he appealed against the ban. Panghal, notably, is known for being a silver medalist at the World Championships 2019 and Asian Games and Commonwealth Games champion.

2) Dipa Karmakar (Gymnastics)

Indian gymnastics star Dipa Karmakar, who finished fourth at the Rio Olympics 2016, served a 21-month ban for testing positive for a WADA-banned substance, higenamine, in an out-of-competition test. Her ban started on October 11, 2021, and ended on July 10, 2023.

She has now retired from competitive gymnastics, which she announced on October 7, 2024, on her social media platforms.

1) Dutee Chand (Athletics, 100m & 200m)

India’s 100m national holder Dutee Chand is another prominent name who received a four-year ban for doping after testing positive for anabolic agents/SARMs in an out-of-competition test in December 2022. The ban started on January 3, 2023.

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