‘Were SOPs followed?’: Karnataka High Court seeks report on details of stadium stampede

Bengaluru, June 5 (IANS) The Karnataka High Court on Thursday sought a report from the Congress-led Karnataka government on the lapses and other details concerning the stampede incident near the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, which resulted in the deaths of at least 11 people.

Taking cognisance of the stampede incident, the high court registered a suo motu Public Interest Litigation (PIL) and sought a report from the state government.

A division bench, headed by acting Chief Justice V. Kameshwar Rao, expressing concern over the tragedy, questioned the government on whether the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) were followed and if adequate guidelines were framed to handle the situation at the Chinnaswamy Stadium during the victory celebrations.

It further sought to know the total number of gates to the Chinnaswamy Stadium and sought to know how many were opened during the celebration to grant entry to fans. The bench also questioned the absence of medical facilities at the spot and the lack of ambulances to shift those who fell sick.

The court asked whether all the deaths occurred at the gates of the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The acting Chief Justice directed the government to submit a comprehensive status report in connection with the tragedy and adjourned the matter to June 10.

Advocate General Shashikiran Shetty, representing the government, submitted the report on the tragedy, stating that while the seating capacity of the Chinnaswamy Stadium is 35,000, about 2.5 lakh people had gathered. He informed the court that normally, 700 police personnel are deputed to monitor the crowd during cricket matches, but during the celebration event, the department had deputed 1,600 police personnel to control the crowd.

People from across the state and Tamil Nadu had come to participate in the event, which led to the tragedy, he said. He further informed the court that there are 21 gates to the Chinnaswamy Stadium and, as per the information available with the government, all of them remained open.

The bench read out media reports regarding the incident in the court and questioned the government on how the lapses occurred and what exactly happened. The court also mentioned that 75 persons were injured in the incident. It asked the government to provide exact details of individuals’ deaths, along with specific information on the exact place of their demise at the stadium.

The court further asked for information on what action the government intends to initiate to prevent such incidents in the future.

Senior counsel G.R. Mohan submitted that only three gates remained open during the celebration event at the Stadium. Senior counsel Hemanth Raj argued that there was no need for the state government to felicitate the RCB players, as they had not played for the country. He submitted that since two programs were allowed on a single day, the tragedy occurred.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka Police have registered Unnatural Death Cases (UDR) regarding the incident involving the deaths of 11 people during the stampede. The Cubbon Park police have registered 11 UDR cases, and no FIR has been registered in connection with the development, sources said.

This move has led to outrage, as the police department had the option to book the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and the event management company. Sources further confirmed that no one has, so far, come forward to take the responsibility. The UDR cases were taken up as per the directions of senior officers, sources revealed.

Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje has written a letter to the acting Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court with an urgent request for suo moto intervention and judicial enquiry into the stampede incident.

Social activist Snehamayi Krishna filed a complaint with the Cubbon Park police on Thursday against CM Siddaramaiah, Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar, office-bearers of the KSCA, and others. In his complaint, Krishna demanded that the police register the case under Section 106 of the BNS Act.

A copy of the complaint has also been sent to the bench of the Chief Justice of the Karnataka High Court, and the petition has pleaded for action to be initiated against the guilty, stating it is a serious matter.

The state government has announced Rs 10 lakh compensation for the families of the deceased and also ordered a magisterial probe.

–IANS

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