Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced the suspension of top police officers at an emergency press meet on the night of June 5, a day after the stampede during the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) celebrations in front of Chinnaswamy Stadium, which left 11 dead and over 50 injured.
However, questions remain, as citizens and opposition parties allege that the police are being made scapegoats, while the government ignored warnings and requests for more preparation time.
A senior police officer told Moneycontrol: "This is unprecedented. A CM calling a press meet to suspend the Bengaluru city police commissioner is unfortunate. At the same time, it affects the morale of the police force. We had issued warnings and sought more time to prepare, but they insisted on going ahead. When tragedy struck, we were made scapegoats. Our personnel were managing unruly fans throughout the night after RCB’s victory”.
Also read: Bengaluru Stampede: Cops arrest RCB's Marketing Head Nikhil Sosale from airport
An FIR filed at Cubbon Park police station stated that despite being denied permission, RCB, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, DNA Entertainment Private Limited, Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) insisted on holding the June 4 event. "Police had warned of massive crowds, traffic disruption, and the need for more time to arrange security, but the organisers went ahead", it said.
It may be recalled that RCB’s announcement on social media on June 4 about a victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to Chinnaswamy Stadium drew lakhs of people to the stadium.
Meanwhile, RCB's head of marketing and revenue at Diageo India, Nikhil Sosale, was held at the airport while trying to fly to Mumbai. KSCA secretary Shankar and treasurer Jayram are absconding. Meanwhile, DNA Entertainment staffers Kiran Kumar (senior event manager), Sunil Mathew (vice president, business affairs), and another staffer Sumanth have been detained and are being questioned at Cubbon Park police station.
RCB victory felicitation at Vidhana Soudha backfires
The Congress-led government’s plan to capitalise on RCB's (owned by United Spirits Limited, a prominent Indian alcoholic beverages company), first IPL title in 18 years backfired, as the celebrations became an embarrassment with images surfacing of CM Siddaramaiah’s grandson Dhawan Rakesh, housing minister Zameer Ahmed Khan’s son Zaid, Ramalinga Reddy’s daughter and former Jayanagar MLA Sowmya Reddy and others attending the event.
Siddaramaiah, who led the RCB felicitation event at Vidhana Soudha for a private franchise, deputy CM DK Shivakumar - seen waving the RCB flag from his car en route to HAL airport to receive the team, and later holding the trophy at Chinnaswamy Stadium even after the tragedy unfolded- and home minister G Parameshwara, who has faced criticism over law-and-order issues in recent months, are also under fire.
In fact, two citizens — activist Snehamayi Krishna and advocate S Nataraj Sharma — have filed separate police complaints against Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar in connection with the Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede.
Karnataka BJP state president BY Vijayendra condemned the government’s handling, saying, “Instead of taking responsibility, CM Siddaramaiah and his government are scapegoating overworked police officials who had initially denied permission but were overruled. This tragedy was driven by political photo-ops and VIP events that diverted police from crowd control. The CM, DCM, and home minister must own up and resign.”
Also, read: Police warnings ignored, poor planning: How RCB victory celebration turned deadly in Bengaluru
BJP leader R Ashoka added, “Congress ministers’ children get VIP treatment on stage while the public suffers in the streets. As people die in a stampede, Congress leaders and their children pose for selfies. Shame on this heartless party. This government won’t last long.”
Experts pointed out that holding simultaneous events at Vidhana Soudha and Chinnaswamy stadium - just 2km apart during evening peak traffic hours - stretched police resources thin, leaving too few personnel to manage the massive crowd at stadium, which has a capacity of only 32,000 but was overwhelmed by over 2.5 lakh fans. Many have criticised the KSCA and RCB management for going ahead with the event right after the tragedy.
What does the FIR say?
In fact, the FIR registered against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), and DNA Entertainment Pvt Ltd. states that the stampede occurred because they went ahead with the celebration without adequate arrangements for crowd entry into the stadium.
The FIR reveals that on June 3 at 6 pm, KSCA CEO Shubendu Ghosh sought security for the June 4 celebration, "but inspector Girish warned that large crowds would require more time to arrange adequate security. Still, RCB, KSCA, and DNA pressured the police to allow the event".
State government suspends officer who registered FIR
However, the state government order on June 5 suspending Bengaluru city police chief B Dayananda and four others said: “RCB CEO informed the Bengaluru Police Commissioner on June 3 about the June 4 parade, but the commissioner’s office failed to issue a "written denial" citing lack of time to prepare”.
Ironically, AK Girish, Cubbon Park police inspector, who registered the FIR, is also among the suspended officials. Others suspended include: additional commissioner of police (west) Vikash Kumar, deputy commissioner of police (central division) Shekar H Tekkannavar, C Balakrishna, assistant commissioner of Cubbon Park station.
Also read: FIR filed against RCB, Karnataka cricket board after 11 killed in Bengaluru stampede
The government’s suspension order noted: “RCB and the Cricket Association tweeted about celebrations and invited fans to Chinnaswamy Stadium without issuing tickets or passes. Despite police knowing a large turnout was expected, no proper event planning, public safety information, or additional crowd control measures were arranged. The issue was not escalated to higher authorities, leading to chaos, loss of life, and government embarrassment.”
Karnataka government has appointed retired high court judge justice Michael D'Cunha to lead a one-man judicial commission with a 30-day deadline. The enquiry is supported by a CID probe, as directed by the state cabinet.
Karnataka govt admits lapses
Meanwhile, Karnataka government admitted to poor planning, took full responsibility for the tragedy, and vowed corrective action. Shivakumar said: “We never expected a gathering of this scale. The event was planned with good intent, but fans’ response exceeded all expectations. We are deeply hurt. The victims are our own family. The image of Karnataka and Bengaluru is hurt. We take responsibility. We are not blaming others.”
Parameshwara announced a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for large events after inspecting the stadium, promising strict action after the magisterial enquiry.
Meanwhile, Karnataka high court justices V Kameswar Rao and CM Joshi took suo motu cognizance of the tragedy and directed the government to respond by June 10. The court issued nine key questions on decision-making, crowd control, medical response, prior assessments, permissions, and SOPs related to the victory celebrations that led to the stampede.
Bengaluru Urban deputy commissioner G Jagadeesh, leading the magisterial probe, said he will summon RCB, KSCA, police, and event organisers for statements and submit his report within 15 days. He will also record accounts from victims’ families and the public, reviewing video evidence before finalising the investigation.
Also read: Who owns RCB? The story behind Bengaluru's IPL team and its connection to Vijay Mallya
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