Spain has plunged into a constitutional crisis after Catalonia held a referendum on independence on October 1, a move banned by Madrid. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's high-handed reaction to the poll, sending in riot police and Spanish Guardia Civil guards to stop voters, made matters worse. More than 5.3 million Catalans were called to vote in the referendum on independence.

Secession moves have disastrously gained ground and on October 3, Catalonia, which is one of Spain's richest regions, held a protest strike where hundreds and thousands marched for freedom. The impact of the crisis was also felt on the football field when a La Liga match between FC Barcelona and Las Palmas at the former's stadium, Camp Nou, was played with empty stands on Sunday.

The picture on the extreme right shows players of FC Barcelona in muted celebrations after Lionel Messi scored their team's second goal during the match.