Bengaluru Police on Friday arrested four individuals, including senior Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) official Nikhil Sosale and three event managers, in connection with the stadium stampede that killed 11 and injured several others earlier this week.
According to the police, the arrests were made in a joint operation by the Cubbon Park police and the Central Crime Branch (CCB) at the Kempegowda International Airport as the accused were reportedly attempting to leave for Mumbai.
Police identified the other three arrested as Sunil Matthew, Kiran, and Sumanth, all staffers of DNA Entertainment. The accused are currently being interrogated at the Cubbon Park Police Station by the Seshadripuram Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP).
Raids were also conducted at the residences of Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) secretary Shankar and treasurer Jayaram.
According to the FIR filed by police, the RCB franchise, along with DNA Entertainment and the KSCA’s administrative committee, went ahead with organizing a “victory celebration” despite being denied official permission for the event. The event was promoted on social media by Sosale and the official RCB handle.
The announcement, which claimed that free tickets would be distributed at Gates 9 and 10 of the stadium at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, led to an uncontrollable crowd gathering. Police said no proper arrangements were made for ticket distribution, and only three of the 21 stadium gates were opened, leading to chaos.
The social media post was later deleted, but by then, lakhs had gathered at the stadium premises. “DNA acted on the instructions of Sosale,” police said in the FIR.
On Thursday, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced the suspension of five senior police officers, including Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda and DCP (Central) Ramesh Banoth, citing serious lapses in crowd management.
“This is one of the most unfortunate incidents I’ve seen in public life,” Siddaramaiah said at a press briefing. “We are deeply saddened, and strict action will be taken against all responsible.”
IANS