Kolkata, June 10 (IANS). The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday granted interim relief to former West Bengal minister Arup Biswas from any coercive action till August 17 in the case related to alleged irregularities in Lionel Messi’s ‘Got India Tour’ programme. However, the court has also imposed many strict conditions along with this relief.
Justice Saugata Bhattacharya said the investigating agency will continue its investigation as per law. If Arup Biswas is issued a notice for questioning, he will have to appear before the investigating agency. Also, the investigating agency will have to give them at least 48 hours notice in advance.
The court also directed that Arup Biswas will fully cooperate in the investigation. If he does not respond to the notice, the police can bring the matter to the notice of the court.
The High Court has directed Arup Biswas to submit his passport to the lower court within seven days. Apart from this, he will not be able to go out of his residential area without the permission of the court.
This case is related to the alleged chaos and crowd management irregularities in Lionel Messi’s ‘Got India Tour’ program organized at Yuva Bharti Krirangan in Salt Lake on December 13 last year. It is alleged that due to security concerns, there was chaos during the program and Messi had to leave the program prematurely.
During the hearing, the court remarked that in other cities the event was conducted smoothly, but the chaos in Kolkata damaged the reputation of the city. The court clarified that granting interim relief does not mean reducing the seriousness of the allegations.
During the hearing, the court also raised questions on the alleged closeness between Arup Biswas and Messi and asked why chaos spread during the event in Kolkata itself.
Chief organizer Satadru Dutta’s lawyer claimed in the court that 70,000 tickets were issued for the event, of which 22,000 tickets were taken by Arup Biswas alone for the people of his assembly constituency. The lawyer alleged that these tickets were sold through various clubs.
The High Court directed the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate to conduct an impartial investigation into the matter and find out why the program could not be conducted properly. The court has also ordered to submit the investigation report within four weeks.
It is noteworthy that in view of the possibility of arrest, former minister Arup Biswas had approached the High Court. Earlier, based on the complaint of main organizer Satadru Dutta, the police had registered an FIR against Arup Biswas and others.
–IANS
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