The stampede that turned Royal Challengers Bangalore’s IPL victory celebrations into a deadly tragedy has taken a dramatic turn, with a government-commissioned investigation uncovering serious lapses. A judicial commission investigating the stampede incident that killed 11 people and injured over 50 people has held the organisers of the RCB victory parade and senior police officers responsible for the deaths and injuries that occurred during the event.
Political interference aggravated the situation. Surprisingly, now the government seeks to distance itself, leaving the police to bear the brunt of accountability. While political pressure is an unfortunate reality, the tragedy should serve as a reminder to the police to never act on oral instructions when public safety is concerned.
Finally, the responsibility for the tragedy is linked to the organisers’ recklessness, the police’s operational lapses, and the politicians’ implicit interference, which have contributed to this avoidable catastrophe. Henceforth, whenever such an event is planned, every institution involved must learn from the tragedy and act with the responsibility to safeguard the public.
