Calcutta HC to hear PILs on violence at Messi event; five spectators held

The Calcutta High Court will hear three public interest litigation (PIL) petitions seeking an investigation by the Central investigating agencies into the violence and vandalism that took place during an event attended by Argentinian footballer Lionel Messi at Kolkata’s Salt Lake Stadium.

A Division Bench of the Calcutta High Court, comprising Deputy Chief Justice Sujoy Pal, on Monday, December 15, 2025, allowed the filing of three PILs in the incident. The petitioners include Leader of Opposition in West Bengal Assembly and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, advocate for Sabyasachi Chatterjee and advocate for Mainak Ghosal.

In the PILs, the petitioners sought the court’s intervention in transferring the investigation from the West Bengal Police to central investigating agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) to probe the mismanagement that led to chaos and the monetary dealings behind the incident.

Thousands of football fans were left disgruntled after they allegedly failed to see Messi on Saturday, December 13, 2025, despite having tickets for the Kolkata leg of his GOAT India tour. Fans claimed the football star took to the stage very briefly, surrounded by a “large crowd of VIPs” who allegedly blocked the audience’s view.

The place was destroyed

Violence between fans soon broke out and some of the spectators damaged the venue. As of December 15, Bidhannagar Police has detained five spectators in connection with the chaos and violence that broke out at the Salt Lake Stadium.

The main organizer Satadru Dutta was also arrested and sent to 14 days police custody. Mr Dutta’s manager Laltu Das and five members of the organization and event management teams were summoned by the police.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has constituted a high-powered inquiry committee to probe the incident, which will be chaired by Justice (Retired) Ashim Kumar Ray and have Chief Secretary and Additional Principal Secretary, Home and Hill Affairs Department as its members.

“During the trial [of the petition]We’ll want to stay on First Information Reports [against spectators]. It is a great injustice to young fans who save their hard-earned money or borrow money to see Messi. Why should Ministers Sujit Bose and Aroop Biswas be arrested while walking around with impunity? Mr. Biswas should be arrested first,” Mr. Adhikari questioned the arrest of the bystanders on Monday.

The BJP MLA from Nandigram alleged that the State police and the State government’s investigation committee “cannot be trusted” and stressed that the Supreme Court’s intervention was mandatory to ensure a transparent investigation.

Advocate Sabyasachi Chatterjee, one of the petitioners, said: Hindu It was claimed that the investigation commission established by the state was not valid and there was no official gazette announcement regarding it.

“We want the inquiry committee to remain because it is absolutely not valid. Investigation of financial transactions related to the case does not come within State matters under the Constitution, so the inquiry committee should not be involved in financial investigation,” Mr. Chatterjee said.