Former West Bengal sports Minister Aroop Biswas on Thursday (June 18, 2026) appeared before the Bidhannagar Police in connection with the probe into alleged irregularities surrounding a 2025 event here featuring Argentine football star Lionel Messi, officials said.

The senior TMC leader arrived at the Bidhannagar Police Commissionerate headquarters around 9.55 a.m., after skipping three previous summonses, they said.

The case stems from a complaint lodged by event organiser Shatadru Dutta, who accused Biswas of ticket black-marketing, extortion, cheating and criminal intimidation in connection with the high-profile football event held at Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata on December 13 last year, featuring Messi.

The event had ended with sections of spectators allegedly vandalising parts of the stadium, claiming that they failed to catch a glimpse of Mr. Messi despite paying thousands of rupees for a ticket, as influential people kept him surrounded on the ground.

Mr. Biswas has denied any wrongdoing and maintained that he was not involved in the financial aspects of the programme.

The Calcutta High Court had earlier granted him conditional protection from coercive action, while directing him to cooperate with the investigation.

On June 5, the former Minister had written to Bidhannagar Dakshin police station seeking two weeks' time to appear, citing health reasons.

Meanwhile, the organiser of Mr. Messi’s India tour claimed on Wednesday (June 17, 2026) that the football legend’s communication team has written to the police, holding Mr. Biswas responsible for the fiasco.

The communication purportedly exonerated Mr. Dutta from charges of mismanagement for which he was previously arrested and jailed during the erstwhile TMC regime.

The Bidhannagar Police, recipients of the reported communication, however, remained tight-lipped about the development.