Bengaluru stampede | CM invited Guv to RCB event at Vidhana Soudha: Report
The claim made by Raj Bhavan sources contradicts Siddaramaiah’s claim that it was KSCA that invited both him and the governor to the event
The Karnataka Governor had initially planned to invite Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) team to the Raj Bhavan for felicitation, but was informed by the state government that the event would be held at the Vidhana Soudha, Raj Bhavan sources have reportedly told India Today.
The report quoting Raj Bhavan sources also says that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah officially invited Governor Thawarchand Gehlot to participate in the felicitation event at the Vidhana Soudha.
Siddaramaiah’s defence
The claims of the Raj Bhavan, however, are contradictory to those made by Siddaramaiah during a press meet on Sunday (June 8) where he said that the felicitation was not organisation by the government but by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA).
Also read: Siddaramaiah on Bengaluru stampede: Pained by incident, have taken action
Defending the decision to go ahead with the RCB victory celebration in front of Vidhana Soudha, Siddaramaiah had said that both he and the governor were invited to the event by KSCA and that no untoward incident happened there.
“After the DPR communication, the Chief Secretary asked me, and even the police agreed to organise the event. That’s when I gave the green signal. After that, KSCA’s treasurer and secretary invited me to attend. It wasn’t a program organised by me. It was their event, they even invited the Governor, so I attended. Beyond that, I had no role,” he told the media on Sunday.
DCP’s letter
The chief minister’s reaction came after a letter written by the DCP (Vidhana Soudha security) before the event, warning against holding felicitations at Vidhana Soudha "hastily", surfaced.
On June 4, along with a felicitation to the RCB on IPL victory at Vidhana Soudha, a celebration was also organised at the Chinnaswamy cricket stadium, where a large number of people thronged, leading to a stampede, in which 11 people died and 56 were injured.
A letter by DCP (Vidhana Soudha security) on June 4 to Secretary to the government, Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms (DPAR), warning against organising the event hastily, and also highlighting that they did not have enough personnel to organise security for such an event, where a large number of people would gather, at short notice, has surfaced recently.
Also read | Bengaluru stampede: RCB, event organisers blame police, move HC
What the letter said
The letter was in response to DPAR seeking his opinion on holding the felicitation event on the grand stairs of the Vidhana Soudha to honour the RCB players.
"The RCB cricket team has a fan following across the country. Organising the event in a hurry on the grand stairs of Vidhana Soudha will lead to lakhs of cricket fans arriving at Vidhana Soudha. This will lead to problems in bandobast since there is a shortage of officers/personnel in Vidhana Soudha security division," the DCP's letter said.
“As the RCB fan following is huge, police personnel from outside the city will be required for bandobast, and it will require time,” he further said, adding that both law and order and the traffic police will have to coordinate for a mega event like this, and there is not enough time.
It never reached me: CM
While accusing the BJP and JD(S) of politicising the issue, Siddaramaiah said that he was never informed about the details of the programme and that the DCP’s communication never reached him.
Also read | Bengaluru stampede: Congress high command summons CM, wants detailed report
“That letter never reached me. The DPR department gave permission. I was informed and said go ahead, but I never directed it to be held in front of Vidhana Soudha,” he said.
Sources had earlier said that Bengaluru Police suggested the felicitation to be held on Sunday (June 8), but the government ignored the request and wanted the event to be held on June 4
BJP slams CM, deputy
Meanwhile, sharing a news alert which makes a similar claim to the India Today report, Karnataka BJP on Tuesday (June 10) said both Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shivakumar are directly responsible for the tragedy which claimed 11 lives on June 4.
Also read | 'I want to stay here': Bengaluru stampede victim's father clings to son's grave
“First, top police officials revealed that despite security warnings, the govt went ahead with the RCB event. Now, Raj Bhavan confirms the CM invited the Governor. If it wasn’t govt-organized, why was the Governor invited? Was it a CM family function outside Vidhana Soudha? CM @siddaramaiah and DCM @DKShivakumar are directly responsible for these murders and they should be punished without any delay,” the party said in a post on X.