The state government on Monday dismantled a 45-feet statue of Argentine football icon Lionel Messi, installed at Lake Town near the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (NSCBI), citing safety concerns.
Officials familiar with the development said the fiberglass statue, which Messi physically unveiled in December 2025 at the start of his India tour, was structurally unsafe.
The entire structure, including the base, is 70 feet tall and depicts Messi holding the FIFA World Cup trophy.
The statue was installed by Sri Bhoomi Sports Club. Club president and former Trinamool Congress legislator Sujit Bose was recently arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with money laundering charges linked to recruitment irregularities in municipal bodies.
Sharmila Guha, a local resident, said the statue had to be tied with ropes on eight sides so that it would not be uprooted during the recent storm.
“Local residents complained that the statue was swaying when there were gusty winds. Last week, ropes were tied to secure it. Engineers from the state public works department also checked on it. It had become structurally unsafe. People feared that it could collapse if there were strong winds during thunderstorms. The fiberglass statue was dismantled on Monday,” a PWD official said.
The statue was shifted to the PWD office in Bidhannagar. A senior official said that no decision has yet been taken on whether he will be transferred or not.
The long-awaited Messi event ended in chaos last December. It was part of the ‘GOAT (Greatest Of All Time) Tour’ which comprises a series of promotional events covering Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.
