Angry fans throw chairs and bottles at Messi event in India

Angry fans attending Lionel Messi's tour of India ripped up seats and threw items towards the pitch after his appearance at Kolkata's Salt Lake Stadium.

Thousands of adoring supporters had paid up to 12,000 rupees (£100; $133) to catch a glimpse of the football star, but were left disappointed when he emerged to walk around the pitch and was obscured by a large group of officials and celebrities. W

hen the Argentina and Inter Miami forward was whisked away early by security after around 20 minutes, elements of the crowd turned hostile. W

est Bengal's chief minister, Mamata Banerjee, said she was "deeply disturbed and shocked" by the events. A

nnouncing an enquiry, Banerjee apologised to Messi and "sports lovers" for the incident at the stadium. "

The [enquiry] committee will conduct a detailed enquiry into the incident, fix responsibility, and recommend measures to prevent such occurrences in the future," the chief minister said on X. A

spokesperson for Messi said that he fulfilled the time commitment that had been agreed in advance. I

n terms of the organisation of the event itself, he referred the BBC to the apology issued by Banerjee on social media. A

police official told reporters that the event's "chief organiser" had been arrested, without giving any further details, AFP reports. A

uthorities will look into how organisers could refund money to those who bought tickets, the official added. T