Denied nod to Asansol fair, Babul Supriyo unfazed

Kolkata: Despite the Calcutta high court’s directive to consider afresh an application for a permission to hold “Sansad Mela” at Loco stadium in Asansol, the Asansol Municipal Corporation on Wednesday refused to give permission to Union minister Babul Supriyo to organise the fair.

After he was denied permission to hold the event at Divisional Railway Stadium or Loco stadium, Mr Supriyo had filed a petition at the high court. The single bench of Justice Harish Tandon had asked the Asansol Municipal Corporation to take a “free and fair” decision — after considering each and every aspect — by Wednesday and communicate it to the fair organisers. Mayor Jitendra Tiwari on Wednesday said the permission to hold the fair was denied owing to multiple factors. “Mr Supriyo is a big star and a large number of people would gather at the venue to see him. The selected venue can’t accommodate such a large gathering and might result in chaos or a stampede. Keeping this in mind, we can’t give him permission to hold the fair. He is welcome to select any other venue, which may not pose such problems,” Mr Tiwari said.

The ‘Sansad Mela’ is scheduled to begin on Thursday. The mega ceremony, planned under Mr Supriyo, will be attended by the likes of Delhi BJP chief Manoj Tiwari.

Unfazed by the decision, Mr Supriyo said that the fair would be held as scheduled. “It is a political decision not to give us the permission to hold the fair. I will make sure it takes place as scheduled,” the Asansol MP said.