E Bengal, Bagan pull out

CALCUTTA, June 15: In an unprecedented move, the country8217;s two leading soccer clubs Mohun Bagan and East Bengal today jointly decided to pull out of the ongoing McDowell Cup protesting against what they called 8220;misreporting in a section of the media8221;.

Some vernacular newspapers today alleged that the two teams had agreed to participate in a replay of their semi-final encounter under pressure from their common sponsors UB Group which was also sponsoring the tournament.

Announcing the decision at a hurriedly-convened joint press conference, East Bengal assistant general secretary Dipak Das and Mohun Bagan general secretary Anjan Mitra said they would be sending a formal letter to the IFA tonight intimating their decision to withdraw from the tournament.

Das said, 8220;By pulling out, we would prove that contrary to newspaper reports, we are not dictated to by our sponsors.8221;