Tragic Stampede Mars IPL Victory Celebrations In Bengaluru

Photo: @RoushanStartup

India-West News Desk

BENGALURU – What began as an outpouring of joy over the Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) historic IPL win after 18 years tragically devolved into chaos and sorrow, leaving at least 11 people dead in a stampede here on June 4. The incident occurred as a massive crowd converged near M. Chinnaswamy Stadium for a team felicitation organized by the Karnataka State Cricket Association.

Eyewitnesses described scenes of pandemonium, with many fans fainting amidst the crush of people. Visuals from the scene showed police frantically moving injured and unconscious individuals to a nearby hospital. Ambulances were seen making continuous trips to nearby hospitals, dropping off casualties before rushing back to the stadium area. The sheer volume of people was also evident at nearby Bengaluru Metro stations, where massive crowds were seen exiting trains and overflowing stairwells.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar acknowledged the “uncontrollable” crowd, stating, “I apologize for the overcrowding. We arranged more than 5,000 personnel. This is a young vibrant crowd, we can’t use lathi on them.”

The massive turnout was anticipated, as a huge crowd had also gathered outside the Vidhana Soudha, where the RCB squad had proceeded earlier from the airport for a meeting with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Despite the Karnataka government having canceled a planned victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium citing security concerns, the fervent celebrations persisted.

Police reported they had been managing the jubilant crowds since the night of June 3, working continuously to prevent any untoward incidents.