Lucknow The Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday refuted claims that they stopped fans wearing the Mohun Bagan jersey from entering the Eden Gardens during their IPL game against Lucknow Super Giants, dubbing them "misleading".
The RP Sanjiv Goenka Group owns both LSG and Mohun Bagan, the century-old football club.
After a section of Mohun Bagan fans alleged that they were not allowed to enter the Eden Gardens because their t-shirts and scarves had Mohun Bagan's logo on them, the KKR management denied the claims and, in a thinly veiled swipe, said the Goenka group was indulging in "ambush marketing".
"There are some misleading reports that are floating around that KKR management had stopped some fans from entering Eden Gardens during the KKR vs LSG IPL game on May 20," KKR said in a statement.
"For the record, KKR management has nothing to do with crowd management at the stadium. We were told that some ambush marketing was attempted by some vested interests, which as per IPL league policy was promptly stopped by the IPL league Anti-Ambush Marketing team.
"KKR is grateful for the great relationship with all its fans in Kolkata and for making every game at Eden Gardens a full house. It has among the largest fan bases of any franchise and would never disrespect anyone," the city-based franchise added.
On Sunday, Mohun Bagan accused Kolkata Knight Riders of high-handedness after their jersey-wearing fans were denied entry into the Eden Gardens.
"It was a special match for the supporters of Mohun Bagan because LSG was wearing a new Green and Maroon Jersey," Mohun Bagan general secretary Debashish Dutta had said in a media release.
"But, the KKR management curtailed the freedom of the Mohun Bagan supporters (who are also fans of KKR and LSG) by not allowing them to enter the stadium as they were wearing the jersey of Mohun Bagan."
Dutta said that the KKR have hurt the sentiment of the football club's supporters.
"Mohun Bagan Athletic Club strongly condemns this decision of KKR management or disrespecting the National Club of India and hurting the sentiment of our supporters," he had said. PTI AH AH
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