3 min readKolkataMay 17, 2026 07:16 PM IST
The newly elected BJP government in West Bengal will launch a fresh investigation into the December 13 ‘Messi fiasco’, with officials within the administration hinting that the tickets for the event might be refunded.
The superstar footballer visited Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium on December 13 last year, during the ‘Lionel Messi India GOAT Tour’. However confusion over seating and alleged mismanagement at the event led to chaos, with attendees vandalising the stadium over not being able to see Messi despite paying hefty ticket prices.
A senior official of state administration said the new Sports Minister, Nishith Pramanik, is considering refunding the ticket prices to the attendees.
“If all things go well, then people will get a refund of the ticket money within one month,” the official said.
However, it is still not clear who will conduct the probe.
Messi — along with former Barcelona teammate Luiz Suarez and former Atletico Madrid star Rodrigo de Paul — had to leave the stadium within 25 minutes of arrival, after ruckus erupted at the venue. The then West Bengal Sports Minister Aroop Biswas, also accompanying Messi, was accused of allowing people without tickets to enter the stadium, infuriating thousands of fans who had bought the highly-priced tickets. This led to ruckus and vandalism, and the event, originally slated to be hour-long, was cancelled.
Satadru Dutta, the organiser of the event, had alleged that political interference, security failures and administrative lapses had led to the fiasco. Dutta, who was arrested at the Kolkata airport within hours of the ruckus and remained in custody for 38 days, claims that he was made the scapegoat.
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After the TMC lost in West Bengal elections, Dutta spoke out about the event. Referring to Aroop Biswas’s defeat in the Assembly polls, Dutta in a Facebook post wrote, “Just because you have lost in the elections, don’t think that you have been punished. I will lodge a defamation case, and if needed, will go to the Supreme Court. I will fight till the end.”
“Repeatedly, I told him (Biswas) not to click pictures here. But, he, using his power, went on to click photos. He will have to pay for this. He is having a laugh while his own people infiltrate. No one heard my cry of anguish. Police also stood still,” he added.
Earlier on Tuesday, the new sports minister had hinted at a fresh probe into the event, and alleged that sports in the state had suffered due to “politicisation” and “VIP culture” under the previous TMC regime.
After taking charge as Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports, Pramanik had told reporters: “It was a very sad episode. I have asked for the file, and if required, I will speak to the chief minister. We will attempt to do something so that the pain of the Messi episode is alleviated.”
