A Bangladeshi fan attending the India-Bangladesh Cricket Test match in Kanpur on Friday was rushed to hospital after he was apparently heckled and assaulted inside the stadium.
The fan, who goes by the name of 'Tiger Robi', was dressed in a tiger's get-up – tiger being the emblem of Bangladesh cricket team – and standing in the C Block balcony of the Green Park stadium where the incident took place.
“A cop told me not to stand at that block. I was there only because I was scared. They were hurling abuses since morning. I have watched enough Bollywood movies to understand the abuses,” Robi said.
A clip on social media videos showed the fan being carried by medical officials and security personnel out of the stadium. Later they made him sit on a chair and fed him water.
The fan through gestures indicated he was punched on his lower back, according to the video clip.
The Kanpur Police, however, categorically denied the charge, and said his version would be cross-checked through the CCTV footage.
The Bangladeshi fan suffered from dehydration and was taken to hospital and now he was fine, Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Harish Chander said.
"Bangladeshi fan was gasping for breath when he met a constable and went unconscious before he could speak to him, but now he is fine," the officer added.
Other details related to the incident were yet to be ascertained.
The incident comes amid a protest by right-wing groups near Green Park with the demonstrators demanding that the Test Match be cancelled.
Police said they have beefed up security in the area in view of the international match.
This isn't the first time tensions between Indian and Bangladesh cricket fans have turned violent.
During the 2023 ODI World Cup match in Pune, another prominent Bangladesh supporter, Shoaib Ali Bukhari, known as ‘Tiger Shoaib,’ faced hostility from Indian fans. His beloved tiger mascot was also destroyed in the incident.
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