 "Bengaluru police arrest top RCB official, 3 others in stampede incident")
The Bengaluru police on Friday arrested a senior official of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) along with three others in connection with a stampede outside the Chinnaswamy stadium, which claimed the lives of 11 people and injured over 50.
The others who have been arrested are associated with DNA Entertainment, the event management firm. Nikhil Sosale, head of marketing and revenue of RCB, Sunil Mathew, and Kiran Kumar from DNA Entertainment Private Limited are among those being questioned, news agency PTI reported, citing official sources.
On Thursday, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddarmaiah instructed the DGP and IGP to immediately arrest the representatives of RCB and DNA event managers and Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) in connection with the stampede, as prima facie there was “irresponsibility” and “carelessness” on their part, and an FIR has also been registered.
According to a report by The Times of India, all four were arrested around midnight and were questioned for long hours. The arrest of these four individuals came hours after Seemant Kumar Singh took charge as Bengaluru commissioner on Thursday.
The Cubbon Park police have registered a suo motu complaint and have named RCB, DNA Entertainment, and the KSCA administrative committee as the first, second, and third accused, respectively. The case has been registered under multiple sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including voluntarily causing hurt and endangering life, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other sections.
Based on the complaint of an injured survivor, Rolongumes, a second FIR has also been registered.
The arrests come after the Karnataka government intensified its crackdown on Thursday. The Siddaramaiah government suspended senior police officers, including the city’s police commissioner, B Dayananda.
Stampede at Chinnaswamy stadium after RCB’s victory
The stampede outside the Chinnaswamy stadium occurred on Wednesday, right before RCB’s victory parade after the team won its maiden title at the Indian Premier League. Thousands of fans gathered outside the stadium, leading to the stampede. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Special Investigation Team (SIT) will lead the probe into the incident now.
Karnataka High Court listed the matter for an urgent hearing on Thursday and issued a notice to the state government, seeking a status report in the case.