The Karnataka government has put all blame on Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and their management for large gathering outside the gates of the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, leading to a stampede that claimed 11 lives and left umpteen injured on June 4, 2025.
In its status report, the Karnataka government mentioned the video of former RCB captain Virat Kohli walking into the dressing room and talking about the celebrations on the next day of the win, leaving less than 24 hours for arrangements needed to control a large crowd. The government said that the celebrations were announced without getting necessary permissions from the police and concerned authorities.
"The RCB Management, in association with its event management partner, DNA Networks Private Limited, and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), unilaterally decided to hold the victory celebration without prior consultation with the police and without obtaining the necessary permissions or licence for such celebrations,” the status report said.
“Subsequently, on 04.06.2025, at 8:55 am, the RCB shared a video clip of Virat Kohli, a prominent player of the RCB team, on RCB's official handle @ Rcbtweets on X, in which he stated that the team intended to celebrate this victory with the people of Bengaluru city and RCB fans on 04.06.2025 in Bengaluru,” the report added.
In the video, Kohli walked into the dressing room with his former RCB teammate AB de Villiers.
“I’m going to feel the real side of it when we get to Bengaluru tomorrow and celebrate this with the city,” he said in the video.
Late post about limited free entry created confusion?
In the report, the Karnataka government mentioned the huge number of engagement on social media prompting fans to join in celebrations.
Fans started gathering in large numbers, converging towards the stadium via public and private transport or on foot. Fans' attendance went beyond 3 lakh on June 4. It was only a few hours before the event (3:14 PM on June 4) that RCB announced on social media that the entry to the stadium is free but limited. The report claims that the post created confusion and frustration among fans leading to the ensued chaos.
“There was no requisition for permissions in the prescribed format, nor was any necessary information provided to the concerned departments to anticipate the gathering and make adequate preparations , as per the Licensing and Controlling of Assemblies and processions (Bangalore City) Order, 2009,” the state government said.