#RemoveATK #Breakthemerger #OnlyMohunBagan
Mohun Bagan is the oldest professional football club in Asia. Over the years, Mohun Bagans contribution to Indian football has been unrivalled. Yet like most other clubs in the Kolkata Maidan, this historic club and its fans have been at the mercy of power-hungry officials who can resort to any means to keep their seats in power intact.
In 2020, after Mohun Bagan became champions of the then top tier of Indian football ( I-league), they were sold and merged with a football franchise from Kolkata called ATK- which was playing in a parallel league called the Indian Supper League (ISL).
The ISL would eventually become the first division from the 2020-2021 season and with Mohun Bagan's merger with ATK, the identity and existence of this 133-year-old club was put in question as a new club by the name ATK Mohun Bagan played in the league. The new board which comprised of majority members from ATK holding 80% stake and 2 officials from Mohun Bagan holding 20% stake, refused to provide clear clarification on wether the identity of this historic club is intact or not.
In digital and social media, repeated attempts have been made to potray the club "ATK Mohun Bagan" as a new entity and not as a continuation of the historic club.
This has led to mass protests from Mohun Bagans massive fan base. Amidst the ongoing pandemic and with restrictions on mobility, this is is the first large scale protest executed by the fans, demanding for the merger to be broken or ATK to be removed.