Bengaluru Stampede: Were Police Warnings To Postpone RCB Celebrations Ignored?

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Last Updated:June 05, 2025, 15:02 IST

The stampede near Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium reportedly occurred after police warnings to postpone RCB's victory celebrations to Sunday were ignored.

The stampede near Bengaluru’s Chinnaswamy Stadium, which claimed 11 lives on June 4, reportedly happened after the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and the state government ignored the advice of the police, who had suggested to postpone the RCB’s victory celebrations until Sunday (June 8).

According to a report with Deccan Herald, a senior police officer said that the police department had attempted to postpone the celebrations to Sunday, saying that they were already exhausted, since the celebrations had lasted until the wee hours after the match was over.

“We tried to discourage them, but there was a mad frenzy. The celebrations had continued into the early hours, and our personnel were exhausted," the report quoted the officer as saying.

“Though we managed to cancel the victory procession, our request to either confine the celebrations to a single venue or postpone it to Sunday, when emotions would have settled, was ignored," he added.

“We simply had no time to prepare. It was a case of ‘damned if you do, damned if you don’t," he said.

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According to the report, a traffic policeman deployed at the stadium also flagged the “poor coordination" among the police, the fire force and the KSCA.

At the time of the stampede, a large number of police personnel were deployed near the Vidhana Soudha, where the state government was felicitating the RCB players.

“We didn’t even have clarity on the event’s agenda," the report quoted him as saying.

A report with India Today also claimed the Bengaluru cops had also recommended Sunday for the victory celebrations as it would have ensured minimal disruption to traffic, since it would be a non-working day.

The incident occurred near the iconic M Chinnaswamy Stadium when thousands of fans gathered to glimpse their favourite players ahead of RCB’s IPL victory celebrations.

The Karnataka government announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the families of the deceased killed in the stampede.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah addressed a press conference and said the government would also provide free treatment to the injured.

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Vani Mehrotra

Vani Mehrotra is the Deputy News Editor at News18.com. She has nearly 10 years of experience in both national and international news and has previously worked on multiple desks.

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