Pune

Kerala Blasters FC

Hinjawadi

chowky

Premier League

FC Pune city

Around 100 spectators, including minors, who had secured an invitation for the ISL match between FCCity and, were denied entry to the Balewadi stadium and held outside the venue on Friday night for allegedly carrying banners to protest the policies of Pune District Football Association (PDFA).Four of them were detained bypolice and released later. The group, dressed in black t-shirts, had come with banners saying ‘#savepunefootball’ which apparently did not go down well with the organisers. “We went with the wish to watch football and also to let the football fraternity know local-level problems in Pune. We were stopped at Gate G and huddled up at a corner. We requested the organisers to allow minors inside after taking away their banners. The police, who were in charge of the security, also asked the organisers to allow kids but they did not,” said Sajesh Pillai, a member of CMS Falcons Football Club.Four adults from the group were initially taken to Hinjawadi policeand later released. The group at the stadium were held until the match ended. The group mostly included players at the local division and are affiliated to several small clubs in Pune. “Our grievances to PDFA were not being addressed. Hence we came up with banners to get attention,” he added. No rules connected to banners and flags were specified on their entry passes.“In leagues like the English, spectators hold banners to mark their protest against clubs, managers or players. The same amount of freedom of expression does not seem to be present here,” said Vijayan Arland, a renowned city-based player who also heads Fatima XI FC.However, top officials of Pune City FC denied any knowledge of the incident. “We are here to encourage football, not to prevent spectators from the stadium. However, I personally feel that the game should not be a venue to push anyone’s agenda. We will investigate the incident,” said Gaurav Modwel, CEO ofPune.The police gave a clean chit to the group. “The spectators’ group was a non-violent one and evidently had no intention to riot. So, no case has been pressed. We cannot specifically identify the complainants in the case,” said Hinjawadi PI Yashwant Gawari.The banner protest is part of a string of allegations against PDFA, which was being deemed autocratic. A section of clubs was upset over CMS Falcons being denied space in the third division for raising their voice against PDFA. Also, it was also alleged that PDFA was tweaking rules to allow their favourite teams to come up to higher divisions. “If they had issues, they could have come to the PDFA office. When the PDFA committee has taken a decision, they should abide by it,” said PDFA secretary Pradeep Pardeshi.