BJP Slams Karnataka Govt Over RCB Stampede Blame

GG News Bureau
Bengaluru, 17th July: The BJP has sharply slammed the Siddaramaiah-led Karnataka government over its report that squarely blames Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for the stampedes during the June 4 victory parade, which resulted in 11 deaths and nearly 50 injuries.

Aravind Bellad, BJP MLA and Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, accused the government of initially trying to claim credit for RCB’s IPL victory after 18 years, only to now shift blame onto the franchise and star player Virat Kohli for the tragic deaths. The state government’s report, made public following a Karnataka High Court order, asserts that RCB posted social media invitations for the parade from Vidhana Soudha to Chinnaswamy Stadium “without consulting the police.” The report also notes that RCB shared a video of Virat Kohli expressing the team’s desire to celebrate with Bengaluru’s people.

These posts, according to the government’s report, contributed to drawing an “immense” crowd to Chinnaswamy Stadium. Confusion regarding entry passes further fueled the chaos, ultimately leading to the stampede tragedy.

Government Solely Responsible: BJP
The BJP has vehemently slammed the state government, accusing it of attempting to evade its own responsibility. “It’s not only RCB that invited people, a huge number of people came on the invitation of the Congress, (Deputy Chief Minister) DK Shivakumar and government officials, the DPAR secretary came on TV and invited people, the government is solely responsible for this,” stated Mr. Bellad.

He further challenged the government’s narrative: “If the report says RCB is solely responsible, why did the government suspend police officers? The Chief Minister should apologise to the former police commissioner.” Bellad argued that if RCB had merely intimated their plans, the government “had all the right to say this event cannot be held.” He concluded by asserting, “Just to take credit for the victory, the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister invited people. To now put the blame on a great player like Virat Kohli or RCB is wrong.”

The state government had initially urged the High Court to keep the report confidential, but the court denied the request, citing no legal grounds for such secrecy. The report details the chaos that unfolded when over 300,000 people gathered and attempted to enter the Chinnaswamy Stadium, which has a capacity of only about 35,000, leading to stampedes at some gates.

The report also provided justification for not calling off the victory parade after the stampede began, stating that abruptly terminating the celebrations “could potentially incite violence among the gathered crowd and adversely affect overall law and order across the city.” Instead, a “measured response” was taken by curtailing the function’s duration and enhancing monitoring to prioritize public safety.