As the India-Sri Lanka cricket match on Sunday was performed in a half-empty stadium right here, the Congress blamed the Kerala Sports Minister’s current controversial touch upon the ticket price for the low turnout, whereas the CPI(M) contended that he didn’t say something fallacious.

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Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram Shashi Tharoor, presently within the southern State, was of the view that no matter what the Sports Minister V Abdurahiman stated, individuals mustn’t have averted turning up for the match.

“People not turning up was a loss. It was not a loss for the Minister. He obtained some headlines. It was a loss to cricket and to those that love the game,” he said.

Amid criticism from various quarters that ticket rates for the ODI were exorbitant, Abdurahiman had sparked off a major controversy by saying that those who cannot afford it need not go to watch the match.

“What is the need for reducing the tax? The demand is that the country is witnessing the phenomenon of price rise so that the tax should be reduced. Those who are starving need not go to watch the match,” the Minister had stated.

Speaking to reporters right here, Tharoor stated the Minister may have averted saying what he stated and the general public must haven’t boycotted the match.

“I noticed some campaigns on social media calling for a boycott of the match. It seems their marketing campaign was efficient. I believe it was illogical to boycott it. I used to be lucky to look at the match, so have been those that got here right here,” the Congress MP said.

Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly V D Satheesan, too, laid the blame at the Minister’s doorstep by saying that Abdurahiman ought not to have questioned the self-esteem of Malayalis with his remark.

Satheesan said the Minister’s “starving” comment has resulted within the match being performed earlier than empty galleries.

CPI(M) State secretary M V Govindan, nonetheless, got here to the help of the minister by saying that Abdurahiman solely meant to say that those that are poor might not be capable to come and watch the match.

“It was the media who made his assertion controversial,” Govindan stated.

The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) stated the low turnout was because of the ongoing Sabarimala pilgrimage season, Pongal pageant and a few CBSE exams scheduled to begin from Monday.

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Besides these, another reason given by KCA president Jayesh George to a TV channel was that the last cricket match held here was in September 2022 and another being held just a few months later might have contributed to the poor ticket sales.

Thiruvananthapuram Corporation Mayor Arya Rajendran, earlier in the day, said the fall in ticket sales was probably due to the reason that India has already won the series or because it is a ODI which is longer than a 20-20 fixture, so people may not have had a lot of time to spend on the game.

She, however, said the increase in entertainment tax on the ticket prices or the Minister’s statement may not be the reason for the drop in sales. As per law, tax between 24 and 48 per cent is levied, she said.

Rajendran also said the tax rate was decided after discussions with the State government and KCA. She was hopeful that more people would turn up by the time the match starts.

When the Minister’s statement had created controversy, the government had said the entertainment tax was actually reduced from a higher rate to 12 per cent.

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(This story has not been edited by News18 employees and is printed from a syndicated information company feed)