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The Kolkata leg of Lionel Messi's GOAT Tour of India late last year turned into utter chaos after a huge number of VIPs and officials allegedly entered the stadium without having passes.
Organiser of Lionel Messi's GOAT Tour of India, Satadru Dutta (Centre right), speaks at the Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on 13 December 2025. Angry spectators broke down barricades and stormed the pitch at a stadium in India after football star Lionel Messi, who is on a three-day tour of the country, abruptly left the arena. (Photo by Dibyangshu Sarkar / AFP)(AFP)Satadru Dutta, the sports organiser who conducted Lionel Messi's GOAT Tour of India late last year, has filed a complaint against Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and former sports minister Aroop Biswas and two others over the mismanagement of the Kolkata leg of the tour.
The two others against whom the complaint has been filed are former police officer Rajeev Kumar and IAS officer Santanu Basu.
Lionel Messi's much-hyped visit to Kolkata's iconic Salt Lake Stadium turned into utter chaos when a huge number of VIPs and officials allegedly entered the stadium without having passes.
Several spectators eventually ended up complaining that they could not get to see Messi because of the mismanagement. Because of the mismanagement, Aroop Biswas came under fire, whereas Satadru Dutta was arrested. Satadru spent 37 days in police custody before being granted bail.
Satadru Dutta's complaint on Lionel Messi fiasco
"Even after I refused to provide the access cards, people still managed to enter the venue. How did they get in? I have filed a complaint. I will file a lawsuit seeking damages amounting to ₹50 crore and I will file a separate defamation suit. They made a scapegoat out of me," Satadru told news agency ANI.
Dutta detailed in his complaint that he had raised concerns about people having possible unauthorised access to the venue. He raised these concerns during a meeting with police officials that included Rajeev Kumar.
Dutta also claimed that he was threatened not to embroil Biswas or any other people linked to the case. He added the even though he got the courage to file a complaint at the time of the incident, he has filed another complaint to reopen the probe.
Several fans paid a huge amount of money, with some tickets even rising to ₹14,000, to get a glimpse of the Argentine superstar. However, because of the mismanagement, these fans were left frustrated and they eventually began throwing bottles into the stadium and attempting to break the gates. Nishith Pramanik, the newly appointed Sports Minister under the BJP government in West Bengal, said that the decision to reopen the case files has been taken.
"It has not even been 10 days since we took the oath as ministers. Yet, our objective from the very outset has been to restore the dignity of all those who were deceived in the "Messi fiasco" - specifically those who were humiliated and mistreated while attending the match. A decision has already been taken to reopen the file regarding the Messi incident; furthermore, the culprits behind this episode will be identified and brought to justice," he said, as per NDTV.
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