Pakistani VIPs want share of Mohali pie
New Delhi: Everyone seems to have been bowled over by cricket diplomacy. Ever since Pakistan prime minister (PM) Yousuf Raza Gilani accepted PM Manmohan Singh's invitation to watch the World Cup semi-final between India and Pakistan at Mohali on March 30, the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have been flooded with requests for tickets/passes to the VIP gallery.
Among Pakistani politicians who want a ticket is former PM Nawaz Sharif. A source said he has asked for 50 tickets from the PCA. During Sharif's tenure, Indo-Pak relations peaked with the launch of Delhi-Lahore bus service and nosedived with the Kargil war. Besides Sharif, Gilani's cabinet colleagues, senators, members of the Pakistan National Assembly and senior political leaders have also been busy calling up the organisers for tickets.
Senior Pakistan Peoples Party leader Aitzaz Ahsan too has said he would watch the match at Mohali. The source said all requests were being channelled through 'well connected persons'. From the Indian side, almost the entire cabinet, several Supreme Court judges, bureaucrats, chief ministers, politicians, and industrialists want tickets/passes.
The PCA has said all 28,000 tickets have been sold. 'With the two PMs coming, it is becoming very difficult for the organisers,' BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla said. 'They are being flooded with requests for tickets. There is a huge queue of VIPs asking for tickets. How do we retrieve tickets that have already been sold out?'
Though the PCA bosses are not clear how they can meet the demand for tickets, they have made arrangements for Singh and Gilani at the Long Lounge. Also, 30 seats have been added to accommodate their close aides.
The Indian High Commission in Pakistan has begun issuing visas to those who have already been to India and have got security clearance. The government announced it would issue 5,000 visas as part of its cricket diplomacy. But the commission is in a fix since most fans applying for visas do not have tickets.
New Delhi: Everyone seems to have been bowled over by cricket diplomacy. Ever since Pakistan prime minister (PM) Yousuf Raza Gilani accepted PM Manmohan Singh's invitation to watch the World Cup semi-final between India and Pakistan at Mohali on March 30, the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have been flooded with requests for tickets/passes to the VIP gallery.
Among Pakistani politicians who want a ticket is former PM Nawaz Sharif. A source said he has asked for 50 tickets from the PCA. During Sharif's tenure, Indo-Pak relations peaked with the launch of Delhi-Lahore bus service and nosedived with the Kargil war. Besides Sharif, Gilani's cabinet colleagues, senators, members of the Pakistan National Assembly and senior political leaders have also been busy calling up the organisers for tickets.
Senior Pakistan Peoples Party leader Aitzaz Ahsan too has said he would watch the match at Mohali. The source said all requests were being channelled through 'well connected persons'. From the Indian side, almost the entire cabinet, several Supreme Court judges, bureaucrats, chief ministers, politicians, and industrialists want tickets/passes.
The PCA has said all 28,000 tickets have been sold. 'With the two PMs coming, it is becoming very difficult for the organisers,' BCCI vice-president Rajiv Shukla said. 'They are being flooded with requests for tickets. There is a huge queue of VIPs asking for tickets. How do we retrieve tickets that have already been sold out?'
Though the PCA bosses are not clear how they can meet the demand for tickets, they have made arrangements for Singh and Gilani at the Long Lounge. Also, 30 seats have been added to accommodate their close aides.
The Indian High Commission in Pakistan has begun issuing visas to those who have already been to India and have got security clearance. The government announced it would issue 5,000 visas as part of its cricket diplomacy. But the commission is in a fix since most fans applying for visas do not have tickets.
News Posted: 28 March, 2011
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