The G.O.A.T event organiser Satadru Dutta has accused the West Bengal Police and local administration of mishandling security arrangements during Lionel Messiโs recent India tour. He claimed to be unfairly blamed and arrested after chaos erupted at Salt Lake Stadium during the Kolkata leg of the event.
Satadru said that administrative failures led to the breakdown in security around the Argentina captain and his Inter Miami teammates, Luis Suarez and Rodrygo de Paul. He mentioned that the former government made him a scapegoat after their own failure and misconduct.ย
“I was not allowed to speak, so I waited to speak one day. To hide their own failures, they made me a scapegoat. It was a failure of administration and police. As an organiser, I cannot be a law enforcer; I believed the police would take care of what was planned,โ Satadru told NDTV.ย
The organiser alleged that several unauthorised people entered the field area despite security arrangements being in place for the event. According to him, influential personalities and officials moved freely inside restricted zones during Messiโs appearance. When informed to the CP and the DGP about the mismanagement, he revealed that even the police officials didnโt take any action.ย
“I assumed the ground would be free, especially the field of play. Instead, I saw influential people who came onto the ground just to take photos. I pointed out the crowd to the CP and DGP, but even police officials who were not meant to be there were inside. I can’t stop bureaucrats from taking photos; that is a breach of security,โ Satadru said.ย
I will file a defamation case against the Minister: Satadru
He also claimed the situation made Messi uncomfortable and said Argentina midfielder Rodrigo De Paul was scratched by a person attempting to take a selfie during the commotion. Meanwhile, even though the Kolkata event drew criticism after the security breach, Satadru reminded the other legs of the tour in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi were conducted without any issues.
“If there were lacunae in my preparations, my events in other cities would also have been affected. In those cities, the police and administration gave us the space to execute the event properly,โ Satadru added.
Dutta also questioned why he alone was summoned by the Special Investigation Team despite, according to him, several influential individuals being present on the field during the incident.
“Why was I the only one called by the S.I.T. when influential people were the ones seen taking photos? My image has been hit and I have been defamed. I will be filing a defamation case against the Minister,โ he concluded.
He further claimed Messi objected when authorities detained him while the Argentina squad was preparing to leave for the next stop of the tour.
Also Read: