In a dramatic political fallout triggered by a football fan moment, West Bengal's Sports Minister Aroop Biswas stepped down from his portfolio on Tuesday. The resignation came after intense criticism over his close interaction with global icon Lionel Messi during the Argentine star's Kolkata visit, an incident that escalated into public chaos at the Salt Lake Stadium.
The Hug That Sparked a Political Storm
The controversy erupted on Saturday during the Kolkata leg of Lionel Messi's India tour. While thousands of ticket-paying fans faced obstructed views, Sports Minister Aroop Biswas was photographed embracing Messi. Members of the Biswas family were also seen in close proximity to the football legend, images that quickly went viral and were dubbed the "Messi mess" by critics and opposition parties.
Public anger at the event boiled over within just 20 minutes. Spectators, who had paid between Rs 5,000 and Rs 16,000 for tickets, began booing politicians and organisers whom they blamed for blocking sightlines. The frustration soon turned into vandalism, with chairs being uprooted and thrown, tents and nets ripped, sofas set on fire, and flower pots and furniture carried away—a scale of disorder rarely witnessed in the city's sporting venues.
Swift Political Reckoning and Resignation
Facing mounting pressure from within his own Trinamool Congress party to "do something," Biswas offered to relinquish charge of the sports department. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accepted his offer pending the completion of a "fair and impartial inquiry." The sports portfolio has been temporarily placed under the Chief Minister's Office (CMO).
Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh described the minister's resignation as an act of "raj dharma" (duty of governance), stating the party believes in transparency. A senior cabinet minister explained the rationale, suggesting that partially "sacrificing" the face of the mess could blunt opposition attacks ahead of the crucial state assembly elections due next year.
Personal Fandom and Political Cost
For the 61-year-old Biswas, a known Messi devotee, the fallout is both personal and political. Friends reveal he was inconsolable when Argentina lost the 2014 World Cup final and euphoric when Messi finally lifted the trophy in 2022. "He got carried away seeing Messi from such close quarters," said a fellow member of the Suruchi Sangha club.
Despite stepping down from sports, Biswas will remain in the cabinet as the Power and Housing Minister. A close aide of Mamata Banerjee, he had taken charge of sports in November 2015 after his predecessor, Madan Mitra, was arrested in connection with the Saradha scam probe. Repeated attempts to contact Biswas for comment on Tuesday evening went unanswered.
The episode underscores how a personal moment of fandom transformed into a significant political liability, forcing a key minister to step aside and highlighting the public's intolerance for perceived privilege amidst chaos.
