Post-game violence left several persons, including police officers, injured in at least three districts in the State on FIFA World Cup night on Sunday. The ferocity of the zealous fans seemed to match that of the opposing teams on the field.
Football hooliganism, a fixture in European soccer matchups, has little precedence in Kerala. The carnivalesque atmosphere at a few public match screening venues in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi and Kannur turned disorderly after zealous fans turned on each other. The match frenzy put scores of public screening venues across the State on edge.
Several fan clubs, including those supported by political parties and resident associations, had set up big screens with amplified sound at public places to transport the world cup final excitement from Qatar to Kerala without dilution.
There were several contributory factors to the incidents of football violence. In several places, fan clubs set up big screens without informing the police. Organisers closed a blind eye to public drinking and roughneck behaviour. Several of the venues were ill-policed, with no or scarce video-surveillance. The State police possibly underestimated the possibility of football rowdyism.
Seemingly inebriated youth, with their loyalties divided between the opposing teams, France and Argentina, attacked each other with bottles and sticks at Pozhiyoor, a communally sensitive coastal neighbourhood in Thiruvananthapuram. An officer, Saji Kumar, sustained severe injuries when a police party tried to break the fight.
In Kochi, a set of drunk fans returning from a public screening on motorcycles assaulted two officers near Kaloor international stadium. The violence broke out when Lipin Raj and Vipin, both uniformed officers, asked the youths not to endanger traffic and ride responsibly.
A passerby captured the violence on a mobile phone, and the dark and grainy footage went viral on social media.
The police have made several arrests in connection with the incidents. But, they might have to take steps to pre-empt the menace of football hooliganism, given Kerala’s almost fanatic affinity for the game.
Moreover, they have to stop the enforced collection of money, mainly from traders, to organise gala football match screenings.
