Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], May 6 (ANI): Janata Dal (Secular) Youth Wing State President Nikhil Kumaraswamy on Wednesday criticised the Karnataka government following the shifting of the IPL 2026 final from Bengaluru to Ahmedabad, asserting that stadiums belong to fans and not VIPs.

In a post on X, the Karnataka Youth Wing chief flagged that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)'s decision was a 'wake-up call'.

He also criticised the state government for 'successfully gifting the home Final (Bengaluru) to Ahmedabad' just to secure their own VVIP passes.

'Congratulations to our leaders for successfully gifting our home Final to Ahmedabad just to secure their own VVIP passes. I said it then, and I'll say it again: The stadium belongs to the fans, not the VIPs. The demand for free tickets by Karnataka legislators has driven the IPL Final out of Bengaluru. The BCCI's decision is a wake-up call. Treating the Chinnaswamy like a personal ticket counter hasn't just cost us a match; it has cost us our dignity on the national stage.' Kumaraswamy wrote in his post.

https://x.com/nikhil_kumar_k/status/2051960879131090991

This comes after the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced that the final of IPL 2026, which was set to be held at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, will be hosted by Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on May 31.

The IPL statement read, 'Bengaluru was originally designated to host the Final. However, owing to certain requirements from the local association and authorities that were beyond the scope of BCCI's established guidelines and protocols, the venue has been shifted and reassigned.'

Meanwhile, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) firmly distanced itself from the ongoing probe into alleged black-market ticket sales linked to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) matches in the IPL, stating that it has no role in the distribution or sale of tickets to the public.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, however, clarified that the decision to shift the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 final to Ahmedabad was driven by the city's large stadium, ensuring a bigger audience, and not related to the distribution of tickets to MLAs.

Speaking to reporters here on Wednesday, Shivakumar emphasised that 50 per cent of the tickets would be reserved elsewhere.

On the shifting of the IPL final to Ahmedabad, DK Shivakumar said, 'The IPL final must have been shifted with the intention that there is a big stadium in Ahmedabad and more people will gather. There is nothing to do with the distribution of tickets to MLAs and the shifting of the final match. 50% will be reserved elsewhere.' (ANI)