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An ambulance arrives at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium as fans gather to celebrate Royal Challengers Bengaluru's IPL title win (AP Photo)
Board of Control for Cricket in India secretary Devajit Saikia has said that the organisers should have done better while planning the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) victory parade on Wednesday. Tragedy struck on what should’ve been a day of celebration as the Bengaluru police couldn’t handle the large crowds outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium, leading to a stampede in which 11 people died. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, who met the players at the Vidhana Soudha as the tragedy unfolded, admitted in a press conference later that the organisers had not expected the crowds to turn up in such large numbers.
“It is very unfortunate,” Saikia is quoted as saying by PTI. “This is a negative side of popularity. People are crazy for their cricketers. The organisers should have planned it better. My deepest condolences to the family of the deceased. I wish early recovery of the injured.”
Saikia said that safety and security measures need to be taken whenever one organises victory celebration of this magnitude. He took the examples of Kolkata Knight Riders’ victory parade last season and the Indian men’s team parade in Mumbai after the 2024 T20 World Cup victory. “When one organises a victory celebration of this magnitude, proper precautions, safety and security measures need to be taken. There have been some lapses somewhere. After such a glorious ending to the IPL, this has been an anti climax. There have been IPL celebrations in the past as well, like in Kolkata last year when KKR won but nothing happened there.” Saikia also cited the examples of the celebrations in Mumbai following India’s T20 World Cup triumph in Barbados.
“Same was the case when we won the T20 World Cup. There was a sea of humanity in Mumbai but nothing happened. Police and local authorities worked in tandem to ensure smooth conduct. I hope nothing more untoward happens.”
A large majority of the massive crowd at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad were wearing RCB colours during the IPL 2025 final on Tuesday. RCB beat Punjab Kings by six runs to win their maiden IPL title, ending an 18-year long wait for the trophy and leading to widespread celebrations in Ahmedabad and Bengaluru that went through the night. “Even yesterday in Ahmedabad, during the IPL final, there were 120,000 people at the stadium but BCCI has a dedicated team which has done elaborate planning in coordination with local district administration and law enforcing authorities to ensure that safety and security of the spectators,” said Saikia.
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