Bengal Minister's Resignation Over Messi Event Chaos Criticized for Spelling Errors

Aroop Biswas was photographed alongside Lionel Messi during the Kolkata event.

West Bengal Sports Minister Aroop Biswas' resignation letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has become viral due to numerous spelling errors. The letter, in which he offered to resign following the chaotic Lionel Messi stadium visit, has drawn criticism from the BJP, who pointed out that a sitting minister cannot properly write in Bengali.

The Bengal BJP unit posted on X: "A Sitting Minister in the Mamata Government cannot even write proper Bengali. After destroying Bengali pride, culture, and language, you decide to resign with such a letter. First, learn basic Bengali spellings! You couldn't even spell the name of your department correctly! We recommend Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar's Borno Porichoy and Rabindranath Tagore's Sahaj Path to begin with." These texts are widely used for elementary education in Bengal.

Biswas has been in the spotlight following the Messi event controversy. Football enthusiasts from across Bengal spent thousands on tickets to see the football legend at Salt Lake stadium. However, during Messi's brief 30-minute appearance, he was surrounded by VIPs including ministers and sports administrators, preventing fans from seeing him properly. This triggered anger among the spectators, who rioted after Messi departed.

Many frustrated fans criticized Biswas specifically, accusing him of monopolizing Messi's time and arranging photo opportunities for his family members while paying fans struggled to catch even a glimpse of the star. Some attendees complained they came to see Messi but only saw Biswas instead.

Although Biswas has submitted his resignation, the letter itself has created additional controversy. A close associate of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, he made at least four spelling mistakes in his letter. Most notably, he misspelled "Kridamantri" (Sports Minister), his own portfolio title. Social media users have highlighted this embarrassing error.

Besides Sports, Biswas also oversees the Power, Non-Conventional Energy, and Housing departments. Sources indicate his resignation hasn't been accepted, though he will temporarily step back from his sports ministry responsibilities during an ongoing investigation. Chief Minister Banerjee has assumed the sports portfolio for now. Suvendu Adhikari, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, dismissed Biswas's resignation as a "hogwash" meant to divert attention.

Senior BJP leader Amit Malviya characterized the resignation as "nothing but a rear-guard action to douse public anger," adding: "This is NOT 'Raj Dharma'. This is an open confession that the Messi event collapse was not accidental but a government-manufactured disaster, born out of the poor governance of Mamata Banerjee, her ministers, and the bureaucracy. This incident is the outcome of loot of common people, so synonymous with TMC, shameless VIP culture that TMC thrives on, deep-rooted cronyism promoted by Mamata."

Malviya continued: "The resignation exposes a collective failure of Mamata Banerjee, her partisan bureaucracy, and her crony cabinet. No resignation will bring back the time lost, the money wasted, or the stolen chance for football lovers to witness Messi in Kolkata. This is a symbolic sacrifice, a political hoax, soon to be buried under layers of bureaucracy, with no justice, no accountability, and no remorse."

The controversy surrounding the Messi event in Kolkata, often referred to as the Mecca of Indian football, has embarrassed the state government despite it being a privately organized event. Chief Minister Banerjee stated she was "deeply disturbed and shocked by the mismanagement" and offered an apology: "I was on my way to the stadium to attend the event along with thousands of sports lovers and fans who had gathered to catch a glimpse of their favourite footballer, Lionel Messi. I sincerely apologise to Lionel Messi, as well as to all sports lovers and his fans, for the unfortunate incident."