4 organisers grilled, cops arrest 1 more for vandalism
Times of India | 17 December 2025
Kolkata: Four of the six officials associated with Satadru Dutta's firm, A Satadru Roy Initiative, which organised Lionel Messi's three-day India tour, appeared before Bidhannagar Police on Tuesday and recorded their statements.
Police commissioner Mukesh said all six individuals were summoned. "Four officials turned up today, submitted their statements, and are cooperating with the investigation. The remaining two have sought time to appear before us. We will record their statements once they present themselves," he said.
Separate teams from the Bidhannagar police detective department questioned the officers from Bidhannagar South and Bidhannagar East police stations. Investigators are examining their roles based on details provided by the company's proprietor, Satadru Dutta, who was arrested on Saturday and placed in 14 days' police custody by a Bidhannagar court on Sunday.
Dutta was booked under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including those related to provocation with intent to cause a riot, mischief, arson, assault on public servants, grievous hurt, and abetment. He was also charged under the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order Act and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act.
According to preliminary findings, around 35,000 tickets were sold for the event through an online ticketing aggregator. The stadium's capacity is roughly 60,000. The remaining seats were largely allocated as complimentary tickets and special passes for sponsors, VIPs, guests, and police personnel.
Of the six officials summoned, two are former footballers who served as project managers and attended key planning meetings with Dutta. Another was responsible for coordinating Messi and his team's schedule and movement, while the remaining three were part of the core organising team handling different aspects of the event. "They were called primarily to clarify their responsibilities and their specific roles on the day of the programme," an officer said.
Investigators are also scrutinising access control at the stadium, including the number of people authorised to enter and the volume of special passes issued. "We are trying to ascertain who permitted prohibited items like water bottles inside the venue and what arrangements the organisers had with vendors, some of whom allegedly sold water at 10 times the original price," a senior officer said.
Meanwhile, in connection with the vandalism at the Salt Lake stadium on Saturday, police arrested another accused, Rupak Mondal of Dhapa, taking the total number of arrests so far to six.