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West Bengal sports minister resigns after Lionel Messi event chaos
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday accepted the resignation of state Sports Minister Aroop Biswas following the alleged mismanagement that led to chaos at Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium during footballer Lionel Messi's visit on December 13, India Today reported.
Biswas had requested to be relieved from his post, citing the need for an “unbiased investigation” into the incident, The Indian Express reported. In response, Banerjee said that she appreciated Biswas' “sentiment and intention” to offer his resignation for the sake of an impartial inquiry.
“I think he is very much correct and until and unless the impartial inquiry is over, the sports department will be looked after by me for the time being,” the newspaper quoted the Trinamool Congress chief as saying in a statement.
Trinamool Congress Spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that the chief minister would retain direct charge of the department for the time being, India Today reported. Biswas, who was also handling the energy portfolio, will continue as the state power minister.
Messi had been in the country until Monday for the three-day GOAT (Greatest of All Time) India Tour 2025. The footballer visited Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi for meet-and-greets, exhibition matches and interactions with Indian athletes.
He was accompanied by his Inter Miami teammate Luis Suárez and Argentine footballer Rodrigo De Paul.
At Salt Lake Stadium on December 13, the footballers' convoy entered the venue at 11.30 am. However, as the footballers entered the stadium, 70 to 80 persons, including the organisers of the event, Biswas and representatives of football clubs, surrounded them.
The spectators on the stands were unable to see Messi, Suarez and Paul as the persons surrounding the footballers tried to take selfies and autographs from them. Messi was taken out of the stadium at about 11.52 am, before the chief minister and actor Shahrukh Khan arrived to greet him.
Subsequently, chaos ensued as angry spectators broke chairs in the stands and threw them on the field. Bottles were also thrown. The spectators broke the gates and entered the field in large numbers.
Temporary structures were overturned and some were even set on fire, prompting the police to resort to lathi-charge to control the crowd.
The personnel from the Rapid Action Force were deployed inside the stadium.
Following the incident, the organiser of the event in West Bengal, Satadru Dutta, was arrested for alleged mismanagement. He was denied bail and sent to 14-days police custody on Sunday.
Banerjee also said that a committee had been formed to inquire into the incident.
On Monday, Biswas wrote to the chief minister, saying that he wants to step aside as the sports minister “for an unbiased investigation” The Indian Express reported. He asked Banerjee to grant his request.
On Tuesday, the chief secretary's office in a notice said that Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar, Bidhannagar Police Commissioner Mukesh Kumar and Principal Secretary of the Sports Department Rajesh Sinha had been issued show cause notices, ANI reported.
It added that departmental proceedings had also been initiated against Deputy Commissioner of Police Aneesh Sarkar “for his reported negligence in his duties and responsibilities on the day of the event”. He was suspended till the completion of the inquiry.
Dev Kumar Nandan, the chief executive officer of Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan (Salt Lake Stadium), was also removed from his post, ANI reported.
Source: Scroll
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