Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) IPL victory in Bengaluru on Wednesday turned into a major accident when at least 10 people died in a stampede outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. According to the NDTV report, thousands of people reached the stadium to celebrate RCB’s first IPL title win. The dead include at least one woman, while around 50 others are injured, who have been admitted to nearby hospitals.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while posting on X, wished the injured people to recover early for the “accident” in Bengaluru.The statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office said, “The accident in Bengaluru is very painful. In this sad hour, my condolences are with all those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that those who have been injured should be healthy as soon as possible.”
Prior to the accident, social media and video on TV showed that the police was trying to control the huge crowd. The ceremony was organized by the Karnataka Cricket Association, where the team was to be honored.
State Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivkumar described the situation as uncontrollable and said, “I apologize for this crowd. We had deployed more than five thousand security personnel, but this was young and zealous crowd, we could not lathicharge.” However, he did not confirm the dead. Many injured and unconscious people were rushed to a nearby Boring Hospital, where treatment is going on. Several ambulances left for the hospital after the accident.
The RCB wins for the first time in 18 years, since the IPL started in 2008. The team consists of star players like Virat Kohli and it has a tremendous fanbase in Karnataka. As RCB won the title by defeating Punjab Kings last night, heavy celebrations started on the streets of Bengaluru. In the celebration of victory, there was a traffic jam situation in many areas of the city. A victory parade was held in honor of the team, which huge crowds gathered to see.
Union Minister and BJP leader Prahlad Joshi expressed grief over the incident and accused the Congress government of failing the mob management. He wrote on social media, “The Karnataka government has failed to fulfill its responsibility. The celebration is in its place, but without taking the right plan and emergency services in confidence, this decision was taken. The incident could have been stopped, the government is responsible and the accountability should be fixed.”