The jubilant celebrations in Bengaluru following Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) historic IPL title win turned tragic after a stampede near the M Chinnaswamy Stadium left at least 11 people dead and around 50 injured.
The incident occurred during a felicitation ceremony organized by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), where thousands had gathered to honor the team. Eyewitnesses reported chaos as the massive crowd surged, causing several people to faint and others to be trampled.
Dramatic visuals showed police and emergency responders rushing the injured to Bowring Hospital, with ambulances making repeated trips from the scene. Nearby metro stations were overwhelmed, with crowds pouring out of trains and struggling to access exits.
Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar admitted the situation spiraled out of control despite deploying over 5,000 personnel. “This is a young and energetic crowd. We couldn’t use force. I sincerely apologise for the overcrowding,” he said.
The state government had earlier cancelled a planned victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium due to security concerns. However, large crowds still gathered at both locations, some climbing trees to catch a glimpse of the players.
Mr. Shivakumar welcomed the RCB squad at the airport and personally handed over bouquets and flags, including the Kannada flag, to star player Virat Kohli.
Police said they had been on crowd control duty since Tuesday night and had tried to prevent major incidents, but the scale of enthusiasm overwhelmed the arrangements.
