Kolkata, 17 December (H.S.) :
Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly and senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday demanded the immediate arrest of Trinamool Congress ministers Aroop Biswas and Sujit Bose over the alleged mismanagement at the Lionel Messi event held at the Yuva Bharati Krirangan.
Adhikari accused the state government of allowing large-scale disorder at the international football programme, claiming that the incident had tarnished the image of West Bengal. He alleged that serious lapses in planning and crowd control led to chaos at the venue.
Accompanied by around 30 BJP MLAs, Adhikari reached the stadium without prior intimation to inspect the damage. However, the gates of the stadium were closed, preventing them from entering the premises. Following this, the BJP leaders staged a protest outside the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate, demanding the immediate release of six spectators who were arrested in connection with the incident.
The Leader of the Opposition alleged a major scam in the sale of tickets for the Messi event, claiming that illegal earnings running into hundreds of crores of rupees were made and routed to the ruling party through ministers. He further alleged that during the programme, ministers and their family members were busy taking selfies with football stars, while ordinary spectators could not even catch a glimpse of Messi, leading to unrest and chaos.
Adhikari also demanded a full refund for spectators who had purchased expensive tickets but were deprived of the programme. He said that he, along with two other lawyers, has filed a petition in the Calcutta High Court seeking the formation of an independent inquiry committee, free from state government officials. The petition is likely to be heard on Thursday by a bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Sujoy Paul.
BJP leaders also pointed to allegedly unsold water and beverage bottles inside the stadium, claiming that illegal collections of around ₹30 lakh were made from vendors in exchange for allowing prohibited items into the venue. During the protest, Adhikari was seen raising slogans outside the police commissionerate.
He said the party would provide legal assistance to the arrested football fans and approach the court to seek quashing of the FIRs registered against them. Earlier in the day, state BJP president Samik Bhattacharya, addressing a press conference, said it was a “mockery of justice” that spectators who bought costly tickets and were allegedly cheated were the ones arrested.
Responding to the allegations, Trinamool Congress spokesperson Aroop Chakraborty said Adhikari should raise the issue inside the Assembly instead of “staging street drama.” He also countered that if Adhikari was serious about accountability, he should demand independent probes into the Saradha and Narada cases as well.
Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh
