The tragic stampede that claimed 11 innocent lives during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL victory celebrations on June 4 has taken a turn, with the opposition BJP tearing into the Congress-led Karnataka government for what it calls “shameless buck-passing” and “political opportunism at the cost of public safety.”
Addressing a press conference on July 18, former deputy chief minister and senior BJP MLA C.N. Ashwath Narayan condemned the state government’s attempt to pin the blame on the Bengaluru police and the RCB franchise, accusing Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar of turning a public celebration into a political stage without ensuring basic safety measures.
“Let’s be clear — it was the Congress leadership that milked RCB’s IPL win for cheap publicity,” Ashwath Narayan thundered. “Police officers themselves warned the government about the risks of holding a mass gathering without adequate preparation, but instead of listening, the same officers are now being turned into scapegoats.”
‘Even when people were dying…’
Pulling no punches, Narayan painted a grim picture of how the tragedy unfolded under the Congress government’s watch. “While people were being trampled to death outside the stadium, the Deputy Chief Minister was busy kissing the trophy for cameras. The Chief Minister was enjoying masala dosa at a hotel even after hearing that people had died,” he alleged, calling it the height of insensitivity.
He also questioned how a mega event on the steps of Vidhana Soudha — the very seat of power — was cleared without proper police approval. “Is this state being run by the government or by KSCA, DNA entertainment , and RCB?” Narayan asked. “This government’s only achievement is the loss of 11 innocent lives.”
BJP president calls out ‘cover-up’
Echoing similar sentiments, state BJP president B.Y. Vijayendra launched a scathing attack on the Congress leadership, accusing them of misleading the Karnataka High Court by submitting a half-baked status report on the judicial inquiry.
“The truth is, the Michael D’Cunha committee has not submitted its complete findings yet, but the government rushed an incomplete version to court just to show they are doing something,” Vijayendra said. “The real reason 11 people died is because the CM and DyCM were desperate to be seen as the face of RCB’s win. Public safety took a backseat to their PR circus.”
Commission points finger at police — but who gave the green light?
The state government has attempted to conceal its actions behind Justice John Michael Cunha’s report, which was presented to the cabinet this week but was not discussed in detail. The commission’s findings held senior Bengaluru police officers responsible for allowing the unauthorised event to proceed, including former Commissioner B. Dayananda, Additional Commissioner Vikash Kumar, DCP (Central) HT Shekhar, and ACP (Cubbon Park) C. Balakrishna.
However, the BJP insists that the real accountability lies with the ministers who used the celebration for their political gain. “Did the police independently decide to let thousands of people gather without barricades, entry regulation, medical teams or crowd control? Or was there pressure from the top to let it happen so the government could hijack the celebrations?” Ashwath Narayan asked.
The commission’s report mentions how chaotic announcements and poor gate management by the organisers sparked the deadly stampede, leading to panic and suffocation. It points out that the KSCA, DNA Entertainment Networks and RCB failed to secure necessary permissions and neglected crowd safety protocols.
Yet, the BJP says it is the Congress leadership that turned a blind eye. “They claim the organisers failed — but who was supposed to ensure the permissions were in place? Who should have enforced the rules? This is criminal negligence by the state government,” Vijayendra said.
The BJP has demanded a full debate in the Assembly on the report and called for action not just against junior police officers but also those at the very top who pushed for a hasty show of celebration without adequate safeguards.
Despite public outrage, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on July 18 dodged media questions about the specifics of the report. “Ministers will study it and we will discuss it in the next cabinet meeting,” he said, declining to explain how his government would hold its senior leaders accountable for the fiasco.
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