Browsing: Kolkata

In a major post-election legal development, sports promoter Satadru Dutta has filed an official police complaint against former West Bengal Sports Minister and TMC leader Aroop Biswas, accusing him of sabotaging international football icon Lionel Messi’s visit to Kolkata in December 2025. Filed at the Bidhannagar South police station on Monday, May 18, 2026, the FIR also names former DGP Rajeev Kumar and senior bureaucrat Santanu Basu. Dutta alleges that Biswas extorted 22,000 complimentary tickets for black-market sales and forced 10,000 unauthorized political associates onto the Salt Lake Stadium pitch, compromising Messi’s Z-plus security and forcing the star to flee after just 20 minutes. Dutta, who previously spent 38 days in jail as a “scapegoat,” stated that the recent political change in Bengal gave him the courage to act, following a fresh probe ordered by the newly appointed BJP Sports Minister, Nisith Pramanik.

South Bengal is under a high-alert weather watch as the IMD confirms heatwave conditions will persist until at least April 25. With western districts already crossing 43°C and Kolkata’s humidity making the heat feel more intense, residents and voters heading to the polls this week are facing extreme discomfort. While the south burns, North Bengal prepares for thunderstorms, highlighting a stark weather divide across the state during this critical election season.

A sudden bomb threat at the Kolkata Passport Seva Kendra in Anandapur triggered widespread panic on Thursday, forcing a complete evacuation of the building. As hundreds of applicants and staff were rushed to safety, police and bomb disposal squads launched a high-stakes search operation to secure the premises and trace the source of the alarm.