A bench of Acting Chief Justice VK Rao and Justice CM Joshi said the court will take up the matter at 2.30 pm on Thursday.
Published Jun 05, 2025 | 11:38 AM ⚊ Updated Jun 05, 2025 | 4:03 PM
RCB parade chaos: Mismatched orders, crowd frenzy, and a tragic end
Synopsis: The Karnataka High Court said that it will hear the matter related to the stampede that took place outside Chinnaswamy Stadium during celebrations marking Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL victory, which killed 11.
Taking cognisance of the stampede outside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, which killed 11 people and injured several others, the Karnataka High Court on Thursday, 5 June, issued a notice to the state government, asking it to file a detailed report.
The court, which ordered the registry to file a suo motu writ petition based on media reports on Wednesday’s stampede, relisted the case for 10 June.
Earlier, the court heard the matter related to the stampede that took place outside Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday, during celebrations marking Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL victory.
At least 11 people were killed and 47 others were injured during the stampede that occurred outside the stadium. A bench of Acting Chief Justice VK Rao and Justice CM Joshi took up the matter at 2.30 pm on Thursday. Police said 11 FIRs have been registered so far regarding the incident.
Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty submitted a report when the court took up the case for hearing.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had announced a magisterial inquiry into the stampede on Wednesday evening.
Earlier, the Advocate General said. “We are taking all steps. We will submit a report. I will get instructions. I will place what we have done, just based on facts what has happened. We are only assisting, there is no adversarial approach.”
He added that if there are any suggestions, citizens of the state could pass them on.
Meanwhile, when another lawyer mentioned that there was a breach of high court security as well, the court said it would look into it.
“People climbed over the walls of the high court building. A similar incident happened earlier. It should not be repeated,” the lawyer said.
The deceased include Bhumika (19), Sahana (23), Purnachandra (20), and Prajwal (22), who were admitted to Vaidehi Hospital. At Manipal Hospital, Chinnaya Shetty (19) was reported dead. Bowring Hospital recorded six deaths: Divyanshi BS (14), Shravan KT (20), Kamakshidevi (29), Shivalinga (17), Manoj Kumar (20), and Akshata Pai (26).
The chief minister had expressed deep grief and said that his government would neither “defend the tragedy nor politicise the matter.” He said nearly two to three lakh people had gathered in and around Vidhana Soudha and Chinnaswamy Stadium, as opposed to the expected 40,000.
He announced an ex-gratia of ₹10 lakh each for the families of the deceased, noting that most of the victims were youngsters.
On Thursday, RCB also announced an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh each for the bereaved families.
After clinching its maiden IPL title on Tuesday, the RCB team, led by Captain Rajat Patidar and Virat Kohli, travelled directly from HAL Airport to Vidhana Soudha.
Thousands of jubilant fans had lined the roads and gathered outside the legislature in anticipation of catching a glimpse of the team.
The government had cancelled an earlier planned victory parade, citing security concerns, and instead organised a formal felicitation ceremony at Vidhana Soudha.
However, the surge of fans around both the stadium and the seat of government quickly overwhelmed authorities. Police sources said 5,000 personnel had been deployed to maintain law and order.
Union Minister and BJP MP Shobha Karandlaje visited the injured at the Bowring Hospital on Thursday.
Speaking to the media after the visit, she said, “Stampede happened at Chinnaswamy Stadium. The government decided to facilitate a celebration abruptly, without any planning. Why did they think of celebrating inside Vidhana Soudha and Shakti Soudha? This wasn’t even a government program. Eleven people have died; who will take responsibility? There were children, students, who will be held accountable? I demand a judicial inquiry under a sitting high court judge, and DK Shivakumar must immediately resign. We’ll see what happens after that.”
