Kolkata crowd going crazy is nothing new.
When Pele’s plane landed in 1977 the crowd ran to the bay where the aircraft was to be parked. The security men stood around helplessly, reports 'The Telegraph'.
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| 1967 mayhem : When Sobers's team played |
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| Pele at Kolkata airport - 1977 |
The ministers, the club officials, their cronies, the press and many others – numbering around 1,000 – created a bigger chaos than the real fans, recalled Soumyajit Bhowmick, a former deputy commissioner of Calcutta Customs who was at the airport on duty.
Pele landed a little after 7 pm but could be taken out of the airport only around 11pm. “Even at that time of the night lakhs of people were waiting along VIP Road,” Bhowmick recalled.
“Police got the information and secretly diverted Pele's car through the old route of Jessore Road. The people waiting to see Pele became furious. Many cars and police vehicles were vandalised,” he said. At the airport, many stuck around Dhiren De, then secretary of the Mohun Bagan club, thinking that sticking close to him would take them closer to Pele.
“I noticed one deputy superintendent of police [DSP] frequently requesting De not to forget to introduce him personally to Pele,” Bhowmick said.
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| Pele in action at Eden Gardens ... trying to defeat Mohan Bagan star defender Subrota Bhattacharjee |
*** So, Dec 13, 2025 -- many among the crowd would be part of Trinamool's 'syndicate' ... well connected. Relatives of cops, ministers, Quiz Masters, singers, actors-turned-netas etc etc !!
One would not be surprised if there are few from connections to the BJP and the communists camps too.
Of course .. old timers would say -- Dec 13/Saturday’s incident brings back memories of a day 48 years ago, on 24 September, 1977, when Edson Arantes do Nascimento aka Pele, arguably the greatest ever to play the beautiful game, visited Kolkata. It was Calcutta then !
Then, Pele’s Cosmos played Mohun Bagan in an exhibition match in front of an 80,000-strong crowd at the Eden Gardens; the result was a 2-2 draw.
Before Messi mess, five tragedies that show Kolkata's troubled history with mega sports events
*** 1996: India vs Sri Lanka World Cup Cricket Semi-Final
Popular Eden Gardens was at the centre of a global tragedy during the 1996 Cricket World Cup semi-final.
It was Semi Final for World Cup. Mohammad Azharuddin had lost a bad toss.
Chasing 252, India were 98 for 2 and headed for a collapse.
Sachin Tendulkar’s dismissal at the hands of Sanath Jayasuriya proved to be a flash point for the mob.
Wickets started falling in quick succession.
India's score board read - 120 for 8.
The cricket lovers "channelised their disappointment into fury". Water bottles were hurled onto the field, forcing match referee Clive Lloyd to award the game to Sri Lanka.
The image of Vinod Kambli walking off in tears remains etched in history even today. Kolkata had virtually voted him out. They did not have confidence that Sachin's schoolmate and batting partner for years can rescue India.
The 1996 was Sri Lanka's and 'magician' Jayasuriya's year. Sri Lanka won the cup that year defeating West Indies in the finals.
Other such mishaps :
2007: IFA Shield Final abandoned
Chaos ruled during the 107th IFA Shield final at the Salt Lake Stadium in 2007.
Palmeiras were leading East Bengal 1-0 when violence broke out between players. Brazilian coach Humberto Ferreira led his team off the field just 35 minutes into the first half, refusing to continue.
Despite frantic negotiations, the match was abandoned.
2012: Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal Derby turns violent
The Kolkata Derby descended into disorder in 2012. The tightly contested match took a turn after Harmanjot Khabra headed East Bengal into the lead just before halftime.
Tensions escalated when Odafa was sent off for manhandling the referee. Enraged Mohun Bagan supporters then began hurling stones from the gallery.
In a cruel twist, one of those stones struck their own player, Nabi, on the head.
Mohun Bagan walked off the field, citing security concerns, and refused to return even though East Bengal were ready to continue. The match was later declared cancelled.
Forty spectators were reported injured.
1980: Mohun Bagan vs East Bengal
The darkest chapter in Kolkata’s sporting history unfolded during a Kolkata Derby in 1980.
Football in Bengal is more than entertainment and transforms into a battle of identity.
The Bangal-Ghoti rivalry associated with Mohun Bagan and East Bengal had reached fever pitch on this day.
(Bangal - for people with roots in erstwhile East Pakistan/Bangladesh and Ghoti is for people with native villages in this side of Bengal)
Traditionally, fans of Mohun Bagan and East Bengal were seated separately in stands. That day, they were not. With no segregation and inadequate policing, clashes erupted in the stands. Fans ran toward narrow exits.
Some jumped from upper tiers onto concrete floors to escape. The resulting stampede and riot killed 16 people.
1967: India vs West Indies Test
Kolkata witnessed its first serious crowd-related controversy during the India-West Indies Test match in 1967, reports 'The Telegraph'.
India were trailing 0-1 in the series, and expectations were sky high among cricket fans for the Indian side to script a comeback against Sir Gary Sobers’s West Indies team.
With fake and duplicate tickets freely circulating in the black market, a stadium designed for around 60,000 spectators ended up hosting more than 80,000 fans.
The crowd spilled onto the field, outnumbering the police. What followed was utter chaos.
ends
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