Lucknow DM spoils semifinal show

However,in the evening,multiplex manager Pawan Singh said: “We will not show the match. We did not get permission from the Lucknow DM due to security reasons.”

When asked about the plight of the people who had purchased the tickets,Singh said: “Those who had purchased the tickets online,their money will be refunded in their accounts. The rest can come and collect their money as per their convenience.”

When contacted in the afternoon,Umrao Theatre manager Naresh Chandra Srivastava had said: “We have 912 seats. Almost 50 per cent of the tickets have been sold. While the ‘balcony’ ticket is priced at Rs 200,the ‘stall’ ticket is priced at Rs 150 each. We are not selling ‘first class’ seat tickets — those are reserved for police and PAC personnel. We have already requested SP Trans Gomti and Thana Mahanagar to provide security during the match.”

However,he too said in the evening that the match will not be shown at the theatre,as he could not get permission from the DM. “We have put up a banner announcing that the match will not be shown. Those who had purchased tickets,their money will be refunded whenever they come to collect the same. We had shown IPL matches successfully,so we expected to get permission for this match as well.”

Interestingly,SP Trans Gomti Nitin Tiwari said he had received an application from Umrao demanding security during the screening of the match. “According to procedure,the SHO decides how much security should be provided in such cases. After I get the assessment report,securitymen will be deployed at the cinema hall.”