Cannot provide security to IPL during polls: Kolkata police chief

Kolkata, March 4 : Kolkata Police Commissioner Gautam Mohan Chakraborty Wednesday said it would not be possible to provide adequate security for the Indian Premier League (IPL) matches during the Lok Sabha polls.

“I have requested the Knight Riders representatives to postpone or change the dates of matches to be held at Eden Gardens during the Lok Sabha polls. It won’t be possible for us to provide them adequate security at that time,” Chakraborty told reporters after a meeting with representatives of actor Shah Rukh Khan-owned team here.

The Lok Sabha poll dates for West Bengal are April 30, May 7 and May 13.

“The IPL matches here are starting from April 11, a time when all political parties will be campaigning for the elections. Then there is a match on May 13 and it is clashing with the poll date for Kolkata.

“There are two matches between April 30 and May 7. Voting on these days will be held outside Kolkata. But one has to understand that city police personnel are also deployed in the districts during the polls,” Chakraborty said.

“The poll time is not ideal for the matches. So, it is advisable that the dates for these matches be changed.”

The police chief said Knight Riders representatives have verbally agreed to change the dates.

“However, they will take a final decision soon and let us know,” Chakraborty said.

The officer also said that after the attack on Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore Tuesday, the security for the teams would be increased.

“After the Lahore incident we cannot take any risks on the security cover of our sportsmen. A large number of additional policemen will be deployed. There will be multi-layered security checks,” he added.

“We are also trying to convince the concerned authorities to sell all match tickets on-line to avoid scuffles and rush outside the ticket counters,” Chakraborty said.