Bengaluru stampede: RCB marketing head arrested at airport, KSCA officials on the run

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) marketing head Nikhil Sosale was arrested on Friday in connection with the stampede outside M Chinnaswamy stadium that claimed the lives of 11 people on Wednesday. Sosale was taken into custody at the Bengaluru airport when he was flying out to Mumbai, India Today reported.

Besides this, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) secretary and treasurer were untraceable and were said to be on the run. The police reached their house but could not find them. 

Moreover, 3 staff members of the event firm that organised the victory celebrations were also detained by the police. Kiran, Sumanth and Sunil Mathew of DNA Entertainment Networks Pvt Ltd were detained for questioning at the Cubbon Park Police Station. 

The FIR regarding the stampede was registered at this police station on Thursday, with RCB, the event form, and the KSCA being named as accused.

The FIR has been filed under sections 115 (voluntarily causing hurt), 118 (causing hurt with dangerous weapons), 121 (hurting a public servant), and 190 (unlawful assembly) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Culpable homicide not amounting to murder has also been invoked in the FIR against RCB and others. 

After the FIR was filed, the Siddaramaiah government suspended Bengaluru's police commissioner B Dayananda and 4 other senior police officers. Others who were suspended included Circle Inspector of Cubbon Park Police Station AK Girish, Assistant Commissioner of Police C. Balakrishna, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Division) Shekhar H. Tekkannavar, and Additional Commissioner of Police Vikash Kumar Vikash. 

As per his official suspension order, Dayananda was informed in advance about the event. The RCB CEO formally informed his office on June 3 regarding the victory parade and celebrations scheduled for June 4.

The failure of the Commissioner's office to furnish a written response denying permission for the event despite insufficient times to prepare for the management of a large public gathering. While addressing the media, Karnataka CM announced that a one-man commission will be formed to probe the incident and what led to the crowd surge. 

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said the state would come up with a new standard operating procedure (SOP) for large public gatherings to avoid such incidents in the future.