Messi's Kolkata tour ruckus: Organiser of Salt Lake Stadium event arrested, asked to refund fans

New Delhi: The chief organiser of Argentine football legend Lionel Messi’s Kolkata event was arrested on Saturday after chaos broke out at Salt Lake Stadium, with fans alleging mismanagement and demanding refunds.

According to internal sources, event promoter Satadru Dutta was the sole organiser of all Messi-related events in India. Sources claim that around Rs 150 crore was raised from sponsors including Adani, JSW Steel and the Goenka Group. Of this amount, Messi reportedly charged Rs 98 crore, while the remaining funds were earmarked for event sponsorship, management and related expenses.

Also Read

‘Still has its influence’: Ex-Congress leader says party needs to do some introspection for revival

Shashi Tharoor hails BJP"s win in Thiruvananthapuram civic polls in Kerala | What Congress MP said

What stays open, what shuts as GRAP-4 kicks in across Delhi as air quality slips into ‘severe+’ category

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee assured that spectators would get their money back. She said that the organiser would be required to refund ticket amounts.

Additional Director General (Law and Order) Jawed Shamim said the situation had been brought under control. “Peace has to be restored immediately, and that has been taken care of. Traffic is normal and people have gone back home. The incident was localised and limited to Salt Lake Stadium,” he said, adding that an FIR has been lodged and the chief organiser arrested.

Shamim said the investigation was now underway. “We are on the job and will ensure that whoever is responsible for what happened today will be punished. The organisers are promising to return the ticket fees to fans, and we will see how this can be done,” he added.

Director General of Police Rajeev Kumar said fans were upset after learning that Messi would not play. “There was anger and anxiety among spectators. The plan was that he would come, wave, meet certain people and leave,” Kumar said. He added that the state government has constituted a committee to examine all aspects of the event, including possible mismanagement by the organisers.

“The organiser has given a written assurance that tickets sold will be refunded. The situation is now under control, and the organiser has been detained,” Kumar said.

Police said further action would be taken based on the findings of the investigation.