SILENCE AT 10: Cheerleaders during a KKR match at the Eden Gardens. Picture by Pabitra Das

The Knights may have done little this IPL season for their home fans to make a song and dance about but the Cricket Association of Bengal is trying to ensure that the music never dies at the Eden Gardens.

The CAB, which replaces the Kolkata Knight Riders as the host of the second qualifier and the final, will be filing a petition in Calcutta High Court on Monday to use the public address system at the Eden beyond 10pm for both matches.

The rule, applicable across the country, is that loudspeakers must be switched off at open-air functions after 10pm. While other cities make an exception for the IPL matches, a hush officially descends on the Knights’ home ground at 10.

“If you revisit the previous IPL finals, there have been music and announcements through the matches and beyond the deadline. It is easy to imagine how drab the prize distribution ceremony after the final will be if the public address system is switched off,” CAB treasurer Biswarup Dey told Metro.

The second qualifier of the play-offs, which the Knights look unlikely to feature in without a mathematical miracle, is scheduled for May 24. The final is two days later.

The Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules, 2000, state that it is illegal to use a loudspeaker or a public address system between 10pm and 6am except within auditoriums, conference rooms, community and banquet halls.

At the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai and Chepauk in Chennai, which have hosted two finals each, music was played and announcements made well beyond 10pm with the authorities’ permission.

Biswajit Mukherjee, a retired chief law officer in the state pollution control board, said these exceptions had been made “in clear violation of the rules”

Anyone violating the noise norm is liable for a maximum of five years’ imprisonment or a fine of Rs 1 lakh or both.

In Calcutta, the rules haven’t been eased despite petitions by the KKR management on previous occasions. The only concession so far has been the high court lifting the sound bar from 65 to 90 decibels so that announcements can be made in an emergency.

“10pm is the latest that I have played during any IPL match,” said DJ Girish, KKR’s man at the console from the start. “I agree that rules are important but crucial games like these need a little bend of rules sometimes. After all, we are looking at mass entertainment. Plus it is being broadcasted globally, so why not?” added Girish, whose playlist comprises a mix of popular music ranging from Honey Singh to Dilliwali Girlfriend.

A feature of the 8pm matches at the Eden this season has been the announcement at 10pm that the music would stop. On cue, the cheergirls retreat from public view.

The CAB started the process of trying to keep the DJ in business beyond 10 by writing to the pollution control board and the police. Neither has given a positive response yet. “We will state in our petition that this is the biggest final in Calcutta since the Reliance World Cup in 1987. We will also point out that the Eden Gardens is not in a residential area. So people are unlikely to be inconvenienced because of the music,” treasurer Dey said.

The CAB has already written to the fire department, seeking permission for fireworks after the final. “The fireworks will, of course, be of international quality. Spectators will be safe,” Dey said.

Senior officials of the fire department confirmed receiving the letter but said that they were yet to take a decision.