"Lionel Messi Felt Claustrophobic": India Tour Organiser Blames 'Influential People'
Speaking to NDTV, the organiser of the GOAT Tour Satadru Dutta, who was detained following the chaotic event at Salt Lake Stadium, revealed a startling detail, claiming the Argentine superstar himself protested when the arrest took place.
- Satadru Dutta claimed he was scapegoated for West Bengal Police failures during Messi's India tour
- Unsolicited influential figures breached security and entered the field at Salt Lake Stadium event
- Messi protested Dutta's arrest on the aircraft before the team left for the next tour leg
In a scathing rebuttal to allegations of mismanagement during Lionel Messi's India tour, the event's primary organiser, Satadru Dutta, has broken his silence, claiming he was made a "scapegoat" to mask the administrative and security failures of the West Bengal Police. Speaking to NDTV, the organiser, who was detained following the chaotic event at Salt Lake Stadium, revealed a startling detail, claiming the Argentine superstar himself protested when the arrest took place on the aircraft as the team was preparing to depart for the next leg of the tour.
"I was not allowed to speak, so I waited to speak one day," the organiser stated. "To hide their own failures, they made me a scapegoat. It was a failure of administration and police. As an organiser, I cannot be a law enforcer; I believed the police would take care of what was planned," he told NDTV in an exclusive interview.
Security Breach and "Unsolicited" Guests
The "G.O.A.T. India Tour," which was reportedly in the planning for three years, turned into a "national embarrassment" when the field of play was swarmed by influential figures and bureaucrats during the first leg in Kolkata. According to the organiser, despite Z-plus security protocols being in place for the Chief Minister's expected arrival, the restricted area was compromised by "unsolicited people" who were not part of the official show flow.
"I assumed the ground would be free, especially the field of play. Instead, I saw influential people who came onto the ground just to take photos. I pointed out the crowd to the CP and DGP, but even police officials who were not meant to be there were inside. I can't stop bureaucrats from taking photos; that is a breach of security."
The chaos reportedly left Lionel Messi feeling "claustrophobic" and visibly uncomfortable with being touched by strangers. Dutta said that the situation escalated to the point where Messi's teammate, Rodrigo De Paul, was allegedly scratched by someone attempting to take a selfie.
Legal Action and Comparative Success
The organiser highlighted that the tour's stops in Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Delhi were executed without a hitch, suggesting that the issue lay specifically with the local administration in Kolkata. "If there were lacunae in my preparations, my events in other cities would also have been affected. In those cities, the police and administration gave us the space to execute the event properly."
Maintaining that the matter is now sub judice, the organiser expressed his intent to fight the allegations in court. "Why was I the only one called by the S.I.T. when influential people were the ones seen taking photos? My image has been hit and I have been defamed. I will be filing a defamation case against the Minister."
The organiser concluded by praising the professionalism of the World Cup winner, noting that Messi remained a "gentleman" throughout the ordeal and even stood up for him during the high-profile arrest at the airport.
Lionel Messi