BENGALURU STAMPEDE
The Karnataka government has held RCB management responsible for the stampede © Getty
The Karnataka government has held Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) management responsible for the stampede that occurred outside M Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4, which left 11 people dead and over 50 injured. The findings were revealed in a status report made public on Thursday (July 17), two days after the Karnataka High Court directed its release.
The report also names DNA Networks, RCB’s event partner, and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) for their role in organising the event without proper clearances and pointed out that the RCB went ahead with the parade despite rejection from the police.
“There was no formal request for permission from the organisers, nor were the required information and details provided, which meant that the request for permission could not be considered. Consequently, the permission was not granted to the letter of intimation dated 3.06.2025 given to the concerned PI,” the report states, putting the blame squarely on the franchise..
“KSCA CEO Subhendu Ghosh informed the Cubbon Park police on the evening of June 3 that a parade was planned if the team won the final. However, police rejected the proposal, citing insufficient details and short notice. Despite this, RCB went ahead and posted invites on social media at 7:01 am on June 4, calling fans to gather for a victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium,” the report says.
According to the statutory rules, an application for such a parade is required to be submitted at least seven days in advance, excluding the date of the function. But the celebration was planned after RCB won the IPL 2025 title on June 3, the court observed.
The report noted that posts – including a video of Virat Kohli asking fans to join the celebration – led to massive online engagement leading to congregations of unimaginable proportions. The caption of the Instagram post from RCB, a screenshot of which was attached in the status report, read: “I’m going to feel the real side of it when we get to Bengaluru tomorrow and celebrate this with the city” – Virat Kohli
Said the report, “This led to a public gathering of immense proportions, exceeding 3,00,000 individuals. One basis for estimating the crowd size is the BMRCL ridership numbers for 04.06.2025, which transported around 9. 66 lakh persons on that date (with the average ridership on regular days being around 6 lakh persons per day). Therefore, including those who travelled on foot, used public transport, and private means on 04.06.2025, the estimated gathering would be well beyond 3,00,000 individuals.
“On 04.06.2025, at approximately 3 p.m, there was a sudden surge of people in a constricted area in and around Chinnaswamy Stadium. Around 3,00,000 individuals gathered in this limited space, far exceeding the stadium’s capacity of merely 35,000. Such a crowd concentrated at the entry gates of the stadium following posts made by the RCB/organisers on their official handles stating that entry to the event would be free for all.
“However, it was only at around 3.14pm that the RCB/DNA/organisers published a post on their official social media accounts for the first time and belatedly, clarifying that entry to the stadium would require limited pass entry (free passes), thereby creating confusion, frustration, and chaos among the public who had already gathered at the stadium and were in high emotions.”
The government noted that no license was sought under the Licensing and Controlling of Assemblies and Processions (Bangalore City) Order, 2009, and that a mere intimation to the police was not enough. “There was no requisition for permission in the prescribed format, nor was any necessary information provided to the concerned departments to anticipate the gathering and make adequate preparation.”
The report added that crowd control was left to police just hours before the event and that several gates, including Gates 1, 2 and 21, witnessed heavy overcrowding and breakdowns in security.
Meanwhile, the state government has challenged the Central Administrative Tribunal’s order that revoked the suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar and four others, arguing the officers failed to take preventive action. “What was the officer doing? Did he take any action? Instead of issuing prohibitory orders under the Police Act, they proceeded with bandobast arrangements for the celebration,” the report said.
The CID investigation is in its final stages. Senior officials from RCB and DNA Networks have recorded their statements. No official timeline has been set for the final judgment.
© Cricbuzz
