Allocation Disagreements
The source of the predicament lies in the allocation of VIP and VVIP tickets by the Durand Cup committee. Approximately 50 to 60 of these tickets were allocated, causing disagreement between Mohun Bagan and East Bengal. As a result, the organizing committee has decided to distribute the tickets evenly between the two clubs, with members of each club having to purchase tickets from their respective tents. Initially, the Durand Cup committee had agreed to allocate 5,000 tickets each to both clubs for direct selling from their tents. However, the clubs did not agree to this arrangement, leading to a change in plans. The organizing committee has now decided to disburse 15,000 tickets each from the clubs' Maidan tents for sale.
Contentious Meetings
A meeting was held by the Durand committee on Wednesday night to address the issue. While initially agreeing to release 5,000 tickets to each club, the officials did not reach a consensus. They proposed that all the tickets should be sold from the clubs' tents, as had been done in previous derbies. The Durand committee agreed to this proposal, but with a condition that the clubs must guarantee the sale of tickets or remunerate the committee accordingly. Unfortunately, this suggestion resulted in the officials feeling insulted, causing them to storm out of the meeting. It is important to note that in previous derbies, both clubs sold their tickets from their tents and reimbursed the Durand committee.
Confusion and Scuffles
The lack of clarity regarding ticket sales led to confusion and even a scuffle at the Mohun Bagan tent on Wednesday morning. Thousands of fans had queued up outside the club tent, only to find a notice from the army stating that ticket-selling would not begin until Thursday. Eventually, the Durand committee decided against selling tickets through their online ticketing partner, BookMyShow, and instead allocated the tickets to both clubs. However, the committee's decision to release only 30,000 tickets for the match has left fans disappointed. Many devoted supporters have had to spend the night waiting outside the tents in the hopes of securing a ticket.
Criticism of the Durand Committee
Unsurprisingly, both arch-rivals, East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, have lashed out at the Durand committee for their handling of the ticketing situation. Ravi Shankar, who runs a fan club called 'East Bengal The Real Power', with over 1.5 lakh members on Facebook, strongly criticized the organizing committee. He expressed his belief that the committee intentionally limited the number of tickets available, preventing East Bengal and Mohun Bagan supporters from attending the match. Despite the seating capacity of the Yuba Bharati Krirangan being 63,000, the committee only released 15,000 tickets for each club, leaving 33,000 seats unaccounted for. Shankar's frustration is shared by many others who have been waiting in line since early morning, enduring the hot and humid conditions, in hopes of acquiring a ticket.