SIT Probes Salt Lake Stadium Vandalism After Messi No-Show; Top Police Officials Show-Caused

The four-member SIT headed by Director Security Peeyush Pandey has visited Salt Lake Stadium to make a study, a day after the Nabanna constituted the high-powered police team to probe the fiasco where fans vandalised the galleries and pitch after failing to see football maestro Lionel Messi.

Besides Pandey, the SIT team comprises of Javed Shamim, ADG and IGP (Law and Order); Supratim Sarkar, ADG and IGP (South Bengal); and Murlidhar Sharma, Commissioner of Police, Barrackpore.

Sources said the team met a few people related to the stadium in the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate before leaving the venue. The incident had left a trial of devastation with uprooting of bucket chairs installed in the 2017 World Cup for under-17 boys.

A probe panel, under retired judge Ashim Kumar Roy, issued show cause notices returnable within 24-hours to West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar and Bidhannagar Police Commissioner Mukesh Kumar regarding the vandalism and its main cause.

Retired judge Roy said the show cause notices to the police top officials were served as per preliminary investigation to know their take on the incident. A departmental proceeding was also begun against Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Aneesh Sarkar, who has been put under suspension.

A preliminary report on the violence and vandalism was submitted to the state government by the three-member enquiry committee.

A media statement issued by the office of the Chief Secretary, said, "Rajeev Kumar, DGP, West Bengal, has been served a show-cause notice to clarify within 24 hours of communication as to why such mismanagement and lapses happened in the stadium on that day and why proper coordination with stakeholders concerned, including the private organiser, was not carried out to ensure the smooth conduct of the event."

The statement further added, "Mukesh Kumar, CP, Bidhannagar, is also show-caused, and clarification has been sought within 24 hours regarding the role and conduct of the Bidhannagar Commissionerate in the management of the event at Vivekananda Yuva Bharati Krirangan (VYBK), Salt Lake."

The Salt Lake Stadium fiasco spilled over in the political arena as the state sports and youth services department Aroop Biswas was relieved from his department by Mamata Banerjee after the former wanted to be relieved for fair probe into the chaos.

Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari also reiterated on Wednesday demanding arrest of Aroop Biswas and state Fire Department Minister Sujit Bose holding them responsible for stadium violence.

Adhikari, who has moved a PIL in the Calcutta High Court for which the hearing is expected to take place on Thursday, described Biswas' resignation as an "eye wash" to hoodwink the people. He alleged the stadium chaos was a scam and demanded return of funds to the football fans, who were deprived to see their football idol after spending thousands of rupees.