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When chants of ‘RCB’ scarred fans: Stampede survivor recalls moments she thought she’d die

The RCB team was taken from the HAL Airport as if in a victory parade. The jubilation, which soon turned tragic, has left an indelible scar in the minds of several Bengalureans.

Published Jun 06, 2025 | 6:04 PM ⚊ Updated Jun 06, 2025 | 6:04 PM

Lisha and her friends had to stand at the door

Bengaluru Metro saw unprecedented crowd on Wednesday.

Synopsis: Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL win ended on a tragic note with a stampede killing 11 revellers and injuring more than 50 others. For many Bengalurans, who were not even at the stadium, the day was a traumatic one.

Bengaluru had seen bigger crowds and better management before, but not a chaotic, mismanaged one like the city witnessed on Wednesday, 4 June.

The intervening night of 3 and 4 June was a sleepless one for the garden city, as its home team, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), through a dominant all-round display, outclassed Kings XI Punjab by 6 runs to lift the coveted IPL trophy.

Clad in RCB colours, red and gold, people poured into the streets as their team’s dry run of 18 long years came to a jubilant end at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Fans from neighbouring districts, too, flowed into the city, cheering at the top of their lungs, and vehicles blaring their horns nonstop.

The celebrations went into the dawn and paused as the wait began for the team, led by Rajat Patidar, to arrive. Though Patidar was the captain, Virat Kohli was still the poster boy of RCB.

The team touched down at the HAL Airport, typically reserved for VIP movement. Jubilant fans lined up the streets leading to the Vidhana Soudha and farther to M Chinnaswamy Stadium, some 1.5 km down the road.

And then, there was mayhem. When all was over, 11 people were left dead in a stampede, and more than 50 were injured.

Related: RCB marketing head, event management firm officials arrested

Tragic victory

Those away from the Vidhana Soudha, the seat of power, where a felicitation for the team was arranged, were not spared. More than 10 lakh commuters crowded the city’s Metro network, the highest single-day footfall in its history.

Commuters were pushed and shoved, and trampled as people rushed to board the Metro. Even two days after the death rode the victory parade in Bengaluru, people were still to come out of the traumatic experience.

Related: Eleven young lives cut short in stampede

‘I thought I was going to die’

A 21-year-old medical student, who preferred to be mentioned only as ‘S’, felt she would die outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium, RCB’s home ground.

“I had no plans to visit the Chinnaswamy Stadium that day. However, my friends and I planned to go there impromptu at about 3 pm. We took the Metro only to see a massive crowd at Gate 7. We were told to book tickets online, and luckily got 10 for our group,” she told South First.

“I don’t know what happened. All of a sudden, the crowd began pushing each other, and the barricades did not hold up anymore. We all got pushed to the centre. Two of my friends and I lost balance and fell,” she recounted the horror.

“Another person was almost going to fall on top of me. I felt like I would die. I was reaching out for help, screaming, but people kept jumping over or stepping on me. Luckily, a random stranger stopped this person from falling on me. He also helped me up,” she explained, her voice still raspy from the constant yelling.

S has sustained multiple injuries on her legs, with her skin darkened in places from all the bruising. Furthermore, she revealed that her pants had also torn during the commotion.

“Despite everything, I went inside and watched the team celebrate its victory. However, I was zoned out. I felt disconnected, almost as if I were in a state of shock,” she described the zombie-like moment, devoid of any emotion.

S’s parents are now discussing whether to seek counselling to help her overcome the experience.

Related: IPS officers given additional charges following suspensions

‘It was insanity’

Lisha Singh is a 21-year-old student who travels from Sri Vivekananda Metro Station to Yelachenahalli daily for college.

“All night, I heard cheers and fireworks celebrating RCB’s win. My friends and I even dressed in red to celebrate. But we did not go out, fearing the kind of crowd that might turn up,” she told South First.

She recalled receiving a call from her worried mother around 2 pm. “She asked me to leave college early that day. She had travelled earlier and told me that it looked like the rush hour had been advanced to 2 pm. Many classes requested the management to wind up early, but to no avail. By the time we left, the Metro and the roads were jam-packed,” she said.

“We regretted not skipping classes to head home, and stepped into the Metro station. However, it was the worst Metro crowd I have ever seen in my life. I have been travelling on the Metro since it began in Bengaluru, and nothing ever topped this,” she exclaimed.

“I was scared of the crowd. They were loud and constantly chanting RCB’s name, something that has come to haunt me today. At one point, I was worried that I might be pushed onto the track, but what followed was not much better,” she recalled.

“Throughout the ride, many people’s faces were pressed against the window. We boarded a short-loop train, and even that was packed. It frequently stopped, and the RCB chants kept echoing at every station. I was pushed off the train three times,” she explained.

“It was insanity. For the first time, the name RCB left me exhausted. There’s this image etched into my mind of a child and mother getting separated on the train. Just like us, they were also getting crushed but trying to reach the other side. It felt unreal. The next day, we found a few footwear scattered at the Metro stations,” she said.

Lisha’s friend Nitakshara, who took the same train, shared similar concerns. “What if a stampede had occurred at the Metro stations?” she asked.

(Edited by Majnu Babu).

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