India, Oct. 31 -- The Delhi High Court has directed All India Carrom Federation (AICF) to modify its name by removing the word India from its title, observing that the federation is a private body and lacks Centre's recognition as a national sports federation (NSF).

A bench of justice Mini Pushkarna in its October 29 order released on Friday also barred AICF from using the words "India" or "Indian" in its name, logo, or future competitions.

The court passed the order while dealing with a batch of petitions filed by the Maharashtra and Union Territory of Pondicherry Carrom Associations, which challenged the AICF's elections and sought to restrain it from using the titles "India" or "Indian."

The Centre's lawyer had said that the ministr...