RCB management held responsible for Bengaluru stampede by Karnataka government- Reports

Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) has been declared responsible by the Karnataka government for the stampede outside M Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4, which left 11 persons dead and over 50 injured.

Two days after the Karnataka High Court denied the government's motion to keep the status report confidential and ordered its release, the government's status report, which detailed the findings, was released to the public on Thursday.

The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and RCB's event partner, DNA Networks, are also blamed in the report for planning the event without the required permits and for the RCB's decision to proceed with the march in spite of police protests.

"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 stated, as per ESPNCricinfo, blaming the stampede on RCB in full.

https://twitter.com/RCBTweets/status/1930074929413927216

"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 added.

RCB’s celebrations of their IPL 2025 win went on inside the stadium, even as people were trampled and injured outside the venue.

Report cites RCB using Virat Kohli’s quote to invite the fans to Chinnaswamy Stadium for celebrations

According to the statutory rules, an application for such a march must be submitted at least seven days beforehand, without including the function day. However, the court pointed out that the celebration was organized following RCB's June 3 IPL 2025 victory.

The report claims that messages asking fans to join the celebration, including a video of Virat Kohli, generated a great deal of online activity and led to record-breaking attendance.

"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 in the video shared by RCB on social media.

 https://twitter.com/RCBTweets/status/1930103465306435819

Government attorneys, meantime, contested the Central Administrative Tribunal's (CAT) ruling that lifted the suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar and four other individuals who were blamed for the stampede and later fired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. They contended that the tribunal had gone beyond its authority.

The government questioned how the officer [Vikash & crew] handled the situation and argued that it was difficult to manage such a big gathering with only 12 hours' notice.

RCB continues to await the report of the CID investigation that is in its final stages. Members of RCB's top brass, as well as those from DN,A have all submitted their testimonies over the past month.

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