Messi Kolkata tour row escalates:Organiser files case against then TMC minister Arup Biswas, alleges black marketing of VIP, VVIP passes

Satadru Dutta, the organiser of footballer Lionel Messi’s Kolkata tour, has filed a complaint against four individuals, including Arup Biswas, a TMC leader and former Sports Minister in the Mamata Banerjee government. The complaint names former DGP and TMC Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Kumar, Kolkata Municipal Corporation Councilor Juin Biswas, and Secretary of the Information and Cultural Affairs Department, Shantanu Basu. Dutta alleged that the four were responsible for the mismanagement and chaos during the Messi event held at Salt Lake Stadium in December 2025. Argentine football legend Lionel Messi came on a 3-day tour of India. He arrived at Kolkata Airport late at night on December 13, around 2:30 AM. The next day, at 11 AM, Messi virtually inaugurated his 70-foot-tall statue in Kolkata. Messi was supposed to stay at Salt Lake Stadium for about 1 hour, but he left after only 22 minutes. Angry fans vandalized the stadium by throwing chairs. During this, stampede-like situations also arose. Dutta was taken into custody in connection with the vandalism at Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium on December 13. After spending 37 days in jail, he was granted bail by the Bidhannagar Court on January 19. 3 pictures of the Kolkata event… Claim of black marketing of VIP and VVIP passes Datta alleged that thousands of extra passes were issued during the event and security rules were violated. He claimed that VIP and VVIP passes were sold in black. He said that when Messi came onto the field, some people broke the security cordon, making the footballer and his security team uncomfortable. After this, Messi ended the event early. Mamata Banerjee had apologized Former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had to apologize for the Salt Lake Stadium incident. ADG Law and Order Javed Shamim had stated that the main organizer Satadru Datta had been arrested. The organizer had also promised to refund the ticket money. Meanwhile, the All India Football Federation had said that it was not their official event. ​