Bengaluru's streets near the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium turned chaotic on Wednesday as around 2 lakh fans gathered to celebrate Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) title.
What was supposed to be a moment of pride for the city soon exposed glaring gaps in planning and crowd control.
At least 11 people and several were injured because of a stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium. The incident has raised serious questions over the timing, planning, and coordination between the Karnataka government, the RCB franchise, and the city police. And the police are now making it clear that they saw the danger coming.
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Police Say Warnings Went Unheard Before RCB Parade Mayhem at Chinnaswamy
The victory parade was held less than 24 hours after the IPL final. Cramped entry points, lack of crowd control, and no buffer zones led to injuries and panic, with many calling it a disaster.
Police officers now claim that they had warned both the Karnataka government and the RCB management to delay the celebrations.
"We tried to discourage the government as well as the RCB franchise from Tuesday night against having any celebrations on Wednesday. We told them it would be ill-advised and recommended holding the event next Sunday when emotions would have cooled down," a police officer said as quoted to the Deccan Herald.
The police had suggested hosting the players inside the stadium for a more secure, single-venue event. Their plea went unheeded.
"We told them not to take out any procession, but to hold it in one place in an organised manner. Bring the players to the stadium and finish it there. Their argument was that the players, especially the foreigners, would leave today or tomorrow," he added.
The officer also hinted at the political motives involved in going ahead with the celebration.
"Naturally, the government would want to take mileage out of it. If the government had refused, that would have led to another kind of chaos."
Another police official described the fatigue within the force after working long hours as fans took to the street after RCB’s victory in the IPL 2025 final on Tuesday.
"On Tuesday, till 5.30 am, all our staff — from the police commissioner to constables — were on the streets and completely exhausted. It was total madness. This kind of frenzy we have never seen."
Turnout Far Exceeded Estimates, Crowd Management Failed to Keep Up
Officials now admit they severely misjudged how many fans would show up. Preparations were made for a turnout in the range of 30,000 to 40,000, comparable to the stadium’s seating capacity. But the actual footfall was several times that with an estimated two lakh people arriving around the venue by late afternoon.
"Free tickets for the celebrations were being issued at KSCA counters near the stadium gates from around 2 pm. By 3 pm, over two lakh people had gathered near the stadium and tried to push their way in. Soon, things spun out of control, leading to the tragic developments well before the event near Vidhana Soudha began," sources told Deccan Herald.
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