City police here on Sunday morning resorted to lathi charge after a large number of people agitated over delay in sale of tickets for India-South Africa one day match scheduled here on October 14 went berserk. The incident occurred outside Yashwant Niwas Road branch of the State Bank of India.
In the hope of getting tickets for India-South Africa one-dayer, thousands of people including students, both boys and girls had been camping outside the bank branch since Saturday night.
As the bank counter opened its counters for sale of tickets on Sunday morning, the large number of people who were in the queue, went restive over slow process of sale of tickets.
They started raising slogans and indulged in hooliganism. A stampede like situation was witnessed forcing people run helter-skelter. Some womenfolk and children were seen getting pressed and pulled up in the crowd.
The chaos did not end here. Some people even broke open the railing and iron gate outside the bank to force their entry inside the bank. At this point of time, the police jawans who were present there in strength resorted to mild lathi-charge to disperse the agitating crowd, thereby inflicting injuries to many people.
Seeing the situation getting out of control, the bank stopped sale of tickets. Being deprived of the tickets, a large number of girls who were present there for purchasing tickets, also started creating ruckus and had a heated arguments with cops when the latter tried to chase them away.
The craziness over crickets in the city could be gauzed from the fact that when they logged on for online purchase of tickets for India-South Africa match on Sunday at 9 am, there were 30,000 person in the queue and their numbers went up to 70,000 by 10 am.
Almost similar craze for tickets was seen in the spot sale of tickets at Yashwant Niwas road branch of the State Bank of India with large number of people were seen standing in queue outside the bank even 16 hours before the actual sale of tickets at the bank counters on Sunday.