Bengaluru Stampede: Karnataka HC Makes Report Public, Holds RCB Responsible For Parade Without Permission | Cricket News
Bengaluru Stampede: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday made public the state government’s report on the June 4 stampede near Chinnaswamy Stadium that claimed 11 lives and injured over 50 during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL victory celebrations. The report lays the blame on the RCB franchise for announcing the parade without seeking mandatory permissions from authorities. The state government had requested the court to keep the report confidential, but the bench rejected the plea, stating there were “no legal grounds” for secrecy. The disclosure comes amid ongoing hearings on petitions seeking accountability for the tragic incident.
No Proper Request for Permission, Says Govt Report
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) organised a victory parade on June 4 “unilaterally” and without obtaining necessary permissions from city police, the Karnataka government has informed the High Court. The event, celebrating RCB’s historic IPL 2025 win, led to a stampede that killed 11 people and injured over 50.
In its report, made public following High Court orders, the state government said that the RCB management merely “informed” the police about a potential event on June 3 —the day of the final but failed to submit the mandatory formal requisition or follow the standard procedure for permission.
No Application, No Plan, No Clearance
The report highlighted that no applications were submitted in the prescribed format, and no details were provided regarding expected crowd size, logistics, or safety arrangements.
Due to this lack of compliance, police did not approve the request made by KSCA (Karnataka State Cricket Association) on June 3. The absence of essential planning specially with a potential turnout of thousands made it impossible for the licensing authority to grant permission, the report stated.
Public Invite Shared Without Consultation
Despite the lack of official clearance, RCB went ahead with announcing the parade. A social media post at 7:01 am on June 4 invited the public for a “free entry” victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to Chinnaswamy Stadium. This was followed by another post at 8 am and a video message by Virat Kohli confirming the celebrations.
The official handle also made another post at 3:14 pm on the same day, clarifying for the first time that entry would be via limited free passes. The court-observed report criticised this as a belated and confusing update that led to public chaos.
Massive Crowd, Poor Planning
The posts drew an overwhelming response, with combined engagement of over 44 lakh views. The report estimates the crowd size exceeded 3 lakh, based on Metro ridership and on-ground assessments, far beyond the stadium’s 35,000 capacity.
“RCB’s failure to share event details in advance with authorities resulted in a lack of planning and created a law-and-order crisis,” it states.
What Led to the Stampede
As crowds swelled at the gates around 3 pm, mismanagement worsened the situation. “Gates were not opened on time and in an unsynchronised manner. People forced their way in by breaking open Gate Nos. 1, 2, and 21,” the report says. Sporadic stampedes occurred at multiple gates despite police efforts to control the situation.
Why Event Wasn’t Called Off
Authorities decided against abruptly canceling the event, fearing it “could incite violence and disrupt law and order across Bengaluru.” Instead, celebrations were cut short and closely monitored. The High Court has sought further clarification from the state government and organisers, including RCB, KSCA, and event partners, on accountability and preventive measures for future events.
