Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday said the BJP would not let the “Messi mess” issue fade, citing unprecedented embarrassment for Mamata Banerjee, who on Saturday had to turn her car back from an event for the first time as chief minister.
Blaming the Trinamool Congress for Saturday’s Salt Lake Stadium chaos and vandalism during the Calcutta leg of Lionel Messi’s GOAT India tour, the leader of the Opposition said: “She (Mamata) claims to be courageous. Why did she apologise? Why did she take the U-turn instead of visiting the event?”
“In her 15-year regime, this is the first time Mamata Banerjee had to turn back her car from an event. We have footage on how her car was forced to retreat.... We will not allow this issue to die, where thousands of people were cheated. The Yuva Morcha is on the streets today (Sunday) and will be so tomorrow (Monday),” he said, adding that many people who bought tickets but couldn’t see Messi and were thrashed by cops had contacted the BJP.
On Saturday, as long as Messi was on the stadium grounds, Trinamool ministers and their aides surrounded him, obstructing the view of thousands of ticket-paying spectators, many of whom erupted in fury. The event was cut short and the Argentinian legend left early.
During his 50-minute news meet, Adhikari raised multiple questions.
Probe panel: Mamata on Saturday formed a three-member probe committee headed by Justice (retired) Ashim Kumar Ray. Adhikari demanded one headed by a sitting judge of the high court, alleging that the present panel would not function independently, and sought governor C.V. Ananda Bose’s intervention.
FIR ‘lapses’: Adhikari alleged that the FIR lodged in connection with Saturday’s incident was strategically faulty. The FIR stated the incident took place between 12.30pm and 4pm, whereas the chaos had ended by 12.30pm, a mismatch that could create legal complications, he said. He claimed that ADG (law and order) Javed Shamim told the media at 2.49pm that organiser Satadru Dutta was under arrest while the FIR was filed at 6.35pm. Arresting a person before an FIR, he said, was a serious lapse.
Satadru ‘scapegoat’: Adhikari claimed that Satadru Dutta was made the scapegoat and that the police named him as the sole accused to protect ministers and other influential persons. He displayed photographs featuring Messi alongside prominent Trinamool faces, including sports minister Aroop Biswas and his family. He likened Satadru to Sudipta Sen in the Saradha scam.
Commercial ‘loot’: Adhikari alleged ticket black-marketing and overcharging, saying a ₹20 water bottle was sold for ₹150–200, chips worth ₹10 for ₹100, among others. He demanded a thorough probe into who organised and benefited from this “economic loot”.
‘Arrest Aroop’: Adhikari demanded the arrest of minister Biswas, stating he should have been accused before Dutta. He asked why Biswas and his cabinet colleague Basu were not arrested. To Trinamool leaders saying that BJP MLA and Adhikari’s close aide Ashok Dinda was also on the field taking photographs with Messi, Adhikari said Dinda was not an organiser.
Plea to Bose: Adhikari urged governor Bose to report the incident to Delhi-based authorities who could communicate with international sports bodies. Governor Bose, who could not visit the stadium on Saturday, visited it on Sunday and said he had readied a report on intelligence failure, mismanagement, the role of police and other aspects, which would be sent to Delhi.
Trinamool leader Kunal Ghosh wrote on social media that the cost of repairing the vandalised stadium should be borne by those who had surrounded Messi and taken pictures with him.
Trinamool spokesperson Arup Chakraborty denied any electoral impact of Saturday’s incident.