Bengaluru stampede: RCB, event organisers blame police, move HC

Royal Challengers Bengaluru moved the Karnataka High Court on Monday (June 9) seeking to quash the criminal case against it in the M Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede incident that claimed 11 lives.

DNA Entertainment Networks Pvt Ltd, the event organiser, has also filed a separate petition challenging the FIR against it.

Royal Challengers Sports Limited (RCSL), owner of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), has contended that it has been falsely implicated in the case.

Court to hear case on June 10

The High Court is expected to hear the matter on Tuesday (June 10).

Justice Krishna Kumar is scheduled to hear four petitions in this matter, including a separate plea by Nikhil Sosale, the marketing head of RCSL, who has challenged his arrest in the case, calling it arbitrary, illegal, and a violation of his fundamental rights.

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Sosale, in his petition, claimed that his arrest was not based on any investigation, and that it appears to have been the result of ‘political pressure’.

‘Clear communication’: RCSL

According to the petition, RCSL claimed that it had clearly communicated on social media that only limited passes were available. It also said that even for free passes, pre-registration was mandatory for entry.

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It alleged that stadium gates, which were supposed to open at 1.45 pm, were actually opened only at 3 pm, causing a crowd surge.

‘Crowd management failure by police’

According to the event management firm, the incident occurred due to failure of crowd management by the police. The company alleged that there were not enough police officers deployed at the stadium, and claimed that most of the police personnel had been stationed near the Vidhana Soudha.

This left the stadium area vulnerable to uncontrolled crowd surges, said DNA in its petition.

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The company said it had deployed 584 of its staff for the event in Bengaluru, and arranged 2,450 food packets for the police. But only 600 of these packets were distributed allegedly due to low police presence in the region surrounding the stadium that afternoon, it alleged.

‘Gates opened late, lathi charge’

DNA claimed that despite clear signs of a crowd surge, the gates were opened only at 3.30 pm. It also alleged that the situation escalated after a lathi charge by the police, which it says triggered panic and led to the stampede.

The company claimed in its petition that it is being unfairly targetted to deflect blame from government lapses.

The firm also said that the event was conducted with an official invitation from the Karnataka government, with the Chief Secretary overseeing the preparations.

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The event management company contended that it had earlier handled a much larger crowd during the victory parade of the Indian team after winning the T20 World Cup. It said though the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai has a capacity of only 32,000, the event went off smoothly.

The police had earlier registered a case against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, DNA Entertainment Networks Pvt Ltd., and the Karnataka State Cricket Association under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

(With agency inputs)