The Madras High Court on Friday called for the response of Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) to a public interest litigation petition which alleged that drinking water, snacks and other food items were sold at exorbitant price during the one day international cricket match between India and Australia at the M.A. Chidambaram cricket stadium in Chennai on March 22.
Acting Chief Justice T. Raja and Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy directed TNCA to file its counter affidavit, within two weeks, to the PIL petition filed by advocate A.S. Shanmuga Rajan of Chennai. The petitioner had claimed to have watched the cricket match at the stadium, along with his friend, after purchasing two tickets for ₹3,283.
Explaining the ordeal that they had to undergo even to enter the stadium on the day of the match, the petitioner said, he had gone to the venue at 11 a.m. itself since it was mentioned that the gates would be opened by 11.30 a.m.. However, due to a huge crowd and resultant chaos, the gates were opened only at 12.30 p.m., he said.
Stating that the stadium had the capacity to accommodate around 40,000 people, the petitioner said, one litre water bottles that generally cost ₹20 each were not sold as it is to the visitors. Instead, they were poured into 100 ml paper cups and each cup was sold for ₹10 in violation of the Legal Metrology Act of 2009, the litigant said.
He claimed that soft drinks too were poured in paper cups and sold at exorbitant costs of ₹50 and ₹100 depending upon the size of the cups. He sought for a direction to TNCA to not sell eatables at such exorbitant prices in future and to ensure that free drinking water, clean toilets and other facilities were made available to the visitors.
During the hearing of the case, Justice Chakravarthy said the organisers might have supplied water and soft drinks in paper cups because people were in the habit of throwing plastic bottles into the ground during the match. The judge asked the petitioner as to why does he want to go to the stadium to watch the match despite all ordeals that he complained of.
