Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 5: A day after the stampede at the Chinnaswamy Cricket Stadium in Bengaluru in which 11 people were killed, the Karnataka government has suspended top cops including city police commissioner B Dayananda. The state government has also ordered a judicial inquiry into the tragic incident.
An FIR has also been filed against the winning team the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the organisers of the victory celebrations the Karnataka State Cricket Association and the event management firm DNA. The steps were taken soon after the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, under attack from the BJP over Wednesday’s stampede, said his government was taking steps against the concerned officials.
The police commissioner and his deputy have been suspended and the next step will be against the RCB and the cricket body involved, Mr Siddaramaiah told the media this evening.
On Wednesday morning, the RCB team management had announced that they would take out a victory march in an open bus from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium. However, the Bengaluru traffic police announced that there would be no victory parade amid traffic concerns. The RCB team arrived at the airport shortly after, scheduled to meet Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah, while the crowd around the Chinnaswamy stadium swelled to over a lakh. Tragedy struck when Gate 3 of the stadium partially opened and a crowd, comprising both ticket holders and those without tickets, attempted to swarm into the premises, leading to immeasurable chaos.
The state cabinet met today and discussed whether the case should be handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). They also agreed to look at the sequence of events that led to the stampede, the roles of the KSCA, RCB franchise and event management company, and police personnel. Action would be taken against officials found responsible for lapses that led to the stampede, the chief minister said.
The police case has been filed under five sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) including Section 105 which deals with culpable homicide. Preliminary findings indicated that KSCA, DNA Networks, and RCB franchise went ahead with the event despite permission not being given. They did not provide proper facilities or manage the crowd entry, even after being warned by the police, according to the initial investigation. The RCB social media account repeatedly posted about free passes at the stadium gates, further encouraging fans to gather, it said.
Based on the complaint filed by Girish A. K., Police Inspector of Cubbon Park station, the police charged the accused under section 105 (culpable homicide) 115 (voluntary causing hurt) 118 (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt by dangerous means) 190 (liability of members of an unlawful assembly for offenses) 132 (crime of assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from performing their duty) ad 125 (endangering human life or personal safety due to recklessness or negligence).
The police had already deployed maximum available resources, which prevented an even greater tragedy, according to the findings. Apart from the first information report (FIR), the district magistrate G Jagadeesha, who was appointed by the Karnataka government to investigate the incident, said notices would also be sent to the KSCA, the Bengaluru Metro, and the RCB franchise.
Mr Jagadeesha visited Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday and inspected the gates where crowding had happened before the situation worsened into a stampede. “I started working on it [investigation] from today itself,” Mr Jagadeesha told reporters.
The report has to be submitted to the state government within 15 days. The district magistrate said he will analyse CCTV footage and other visuals from the area at the time the incident happened, for which he will ask families of those who were killed and injured for their statements.
The general public can also give their statements between 10.30 am and 1.30 pm on June 13, the district magistrate said. A list of policemen who were deployed during the RCB’s IPL victory celebration will be made and they will be asked to give their statements, he added. Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said it was not the state government that wanted to bring the players for the victory celebrations to Bengaluru.
“We did not make any request to the Royal Challengers Bengaluru franchise or the Karnataka State Cricket Association in this regard. They organised the victory celebration event,” Mr Parameshwara told reporters. “The government also felt that it should felicitate the players and be a part of the celebration because it was a Bengaluru team. That’s all.” The state home minister said the KSCA and the RCB brought the team to Bengaluru for celebrations.
India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir criticised everyone involved in organising Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL victory celebrations and said “I was never a believer of having a road show. Even in 2007, I was not in favour of that. Have it in a closed door or in a stadium. I hope nothing like this happens in the future.”
Gambhir didn’t wish to comment on who was responsible or whether the nature of fandom had changed over the years. “We need to be responsible citizens, in every aspect, of whether being a franchise. If we were not ready to hold a road show, shouldn’t have done that. You can’t lose 11 people.”
The family of the 15-year-old girl, Divyanshi who died in the stampede, said they had to wait nearly four hours before an FIR could be filed. Her grieving father, Shivakumar, recounted how his daughter fell after being pushed at Gate Number 15. His wife and sister-in-law were also present then, he added.
“They (officials) came and visited (afterwards), but no proper support was provided. They didn’t even give proper first aid. My wife said she was begging for some support. Finally, my daughter was taken in an auto, with no support from the police. Even to file an FIR, we had to wait four hours,” Shivakumar said. The girl’s body has been taken to Andhra Pradesh for the last rites and cremation, he added.
