Photo courtesy @SridharDPS|X
By G Krishna Mohan Rao*
The stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on June 4, 2025, which resulted in the death of at least 11 persons, has raised uncomfortable questions that need answers. On its part, the Karnataka government has suspended several top police officials, and some persons have been arrested and sent to judicial custody for their alleged role in the incident. Karnataka State Cricket Association secretary and treasurer stepped down from their posts on moral grounds.
Yesterday, the Karnataka High Court asked the state government nine questions on the killer stampede, from who decided on the celebrations to whether crowd control measures were adopted.These questions have tightened screws on the Congress government in the state. Rattled by pressure from all around, the state government also issued an order on Saturday, for a judicial probe to be conducted by retired judge Justice John Cunha. The government also ordered a magisterial inquiry by the deputy commissioner for the Bengaluru region in his capacity as an executive magistrate.
There is no doubt there should be accountability when any such thing happens that results in the loss of precious human lives. However, for some odd reason, the issue of “where the buck stops” always remains unresolved.
The entire opposition is blaming the Congress government for the tragedy, but the Congress is blaming the Police for its failure. The common people are blaming the police as well as the political class.
In Bengaluru, the police in particular failed to gather the mood of the people and for reasons best known to top officials, did not follow the basic drills to ensure that such large crowds would not gather at a particular place. The failure of the police department was for all to see, and the stampede that occurred could have been prevented, had better preparedness been shown by the official machinery in dealing with the emerging situation.
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) had won the IPL trophy for the first time after an 18 years’ wait. The entire atmosphere in the city was charged, as fans waited for the winning team to accord them a befitting reception. While cricket lovers made their way towards the stadium, the police and officials failed to anticipate what could have happened.
The followers of RCB used social media to send messages about the victory celebrations, but the police which could have done a similar thing, was unable to communicate, the convergence at one place was a recipe for disaster. The politicians made things worse since they were extremely eager to cash in on the victory of a private franchise, and which had very little to do with the Karnataka cricket administration. They also failed to anticipate the worst and were under the impression that the police would do its job, which ultimately it did not.
What Karnataka police needed to understand is how police forces of other cities like Mumbai have handled such situations. One may recall that when the Indian team won the World Cup, the celebrations were spread out throughout Mumbai where the winners toured the metropolis in a double decker bus.The fans were able to watch their favourite players without any difficulty, and though the final destination of the bus was the Wankhede Stadium, the crowds were not concentrated at one venue alone. Everyone was satisfied.
In Bengaluru, the cops should have similarly advised the RCB players to travel in an open bus through the streets, instead of allowing the fans to gather at the Chinnaswamy stadium which has limited capacity, and was not the place where so many people could have been accommodated.
The normal drill was not observed, and when so many people converged at one venue, the police had no answer. The stampede that followed caught everyone unaware.
It was a shameful day and would always be recalled whenever the RCB’s title winning feat is discussed in the future.
There are lessons to learn from so many past events. In the 1950s, the authorities at that time decided to have a long route for the Republic Day parade so that crowds were spread out and would not converge at the Rajpath to have a look at the military and cultural pageantry.
Over the years, when the crowd interest started diminishing, the government decided to curtail the route. There was a well considered rationale in having the long route.This is where the Bengaluru police have failed to rise to the occasion. They should have ensured that the concentration of people at one place, which could not hold them beyond a certain limit, was not permitted.
Just over the past year, we have seen stampedes take lives of Kumbh travellers at the New Delhi Railway station, at a Dalit gathering in Hathras, a devotees queue in Tirupati, a Pushpa 2 promotional event in Hyderabad, and the list continues. Because basic crowd management is missing, ordinary activities are always on the edge of a deadly pileup.
The BJP is now demanding action against the Karnataka government for the incident.There is no doubt that both Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and his deputy DK Shiva Kumar should have been more cautious and Home Minister should have also been more proactive. What needs to be understood is that more than the politicians, the police which is a professional force trained to deal with such situations, should have been more responsive.
The entire -opposition and the public at large are questioning the government for its failure, that despite the warning, the victory celebrations were rushed through—less than 24 hours after the final match—without safety protocols.
Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje accused the Congress top brass and said “ [Chief Minister] Siddaramaiah and [Deputy CM] DK Shiva Kumar have blood on their hands. Now they are trying to wipe it on police officers”. Another Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy alleged that the celebrations were pre-planned even before the RCB won.
*Senior journalist
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