Bengaluru, June 6 The political temperature in Karnataka soared after a tragic stampede near the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru claimed the lives of 11 people during the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) IPL 2025 victory celebrations.
As grief and anger mount, sharp criticism has emerged from the Opposition, with BJP leaders holding the Karnataka government squarely responsible for the chaos.
BJP leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar launched a scathing attack on the Congress administration, calling it “the most inept, corrupt, incompetent and heartless government in all of India.”
Speaking to IANS Chandrasekhar said, "Today, in Karnataka, pensioners struggle to receive their pensions and farmers struggle to avoid suicide. They are an anti-people government. They made a lot of promises during the elections, fooled the people, and came to power."
Referring to the visuals of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar attending the RCB celebrations at the stadium, he added, “The Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister were sitting in the stadium, celebrating the exciting win of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, as if they had any role in that victory. They were surrounded by police and security, while fans, the ones who had a real role in the celebration, were trampled to death outside. This is the insensitivity of the Karnataka government.”
He further questioned the deputy CM’s public compliment to the police. “How can you compliment the police after 11 people died? Why is Rahul Gandhi not asking for accountability? This is classic hypocrisy of the Congress party.”
Echoing similar sentiments, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla called the tragedy a "state-sponsored man-made disaster."
“In order to save themselves, they are continuously looking for scapegoats. Action has been taken against the event manager and the team, but the leaders who allowed this man-made, state-sponsored murder to happen in their race for publicity and credit have not been held accountable yet,” Poonawalla stated.
He questioned why the celebration event was held at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium despite reports that police had not granted permission.
“When the police had denied permission, what was D.K. Shivakumar doing there? The government is directly responsible, for both the Chief Minister and the Deputy Chief Minister. But now, to shield themselves, they are making others scapegoats,” he said.
Poonawalla also criticised the government’s decision to conduct only a magisterial inquiry rather than a judicial investigation. “A full and thorough investigation should be conducted. The reason they are avoiding a judicial probe is because they want to save themselves,” he claimed.
Following the incident, Bengaluru Police arrested four individuals, including the marketing head of RCB, raising further questions about event planning and crowd control mechanisms.
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