[Watch] Bangladeshi fan alleges being beaten in Kanpur, rushed to hospital during 2nd IND vs BAN Test
Some spectators allegedly hit and injured a Bangladesh cricket fan in the lower abdomen at Kanpur's Green Park Stadium on Friday during the opening day of the nation's men's Test against India. The fan, who goes by the name 'Tiger Robi', was rushed to hospital by local police and stadium officials.
Some reports from local journalists also claimed that a few spectators snatched his national flag after pushing him. Videos from the ground showed him sitting in pain on a plastic chair outside the ground, painted in a Tiger pattern, and crowded by journalists, spectators, and policemen.
You can watch a couple of clips below:
"They hit me on my back and lower abdomen and I could not breathe,” Robi told Sportstar.
However, a police source quoted by the magazine denied all allegations.
“One of our officers found him gasping for breath near the C block entrance, and he was struggling to speak. It seems like a case of dehydration, but we will wait for the doctors’ advice,” the source said to Sportstar.
Tensions have been flaring slightly in Kanpur since Bangladesh arrived in India for the Test series, which began in Chennai on September 19. Some fans have expressed their animosity with the tour citing alleged atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh during the anti-government protests which turned violent in the last few months and culminated in the overthrowing of the Sheikh Hasina regime.
The UP government was also said to have beefed up the security arrangements ahead of the Tests and some 20 miscreants blocking roads were arrested. Players from both teams had to be escorted from the airport to the hotel amid tight security.
Not the first time a Bangladeshi fan has been assaulted in India
This is the second such incident in India in the last two years. During the 2023 men's World Cup, some Indian fans tore a tiger mascot soft-toy of Shoaib Ali, who had traveled from Bangladesh to catch his team's clash against India in Pune. Some locals later apologized to him and others gifted him a new mascot.