Bengaluru Stampede | Police Officers Were Suspended For Failing To Act Based On Available Information: State Tells Karnataka HC

The state government on Friday told the Karnataka High Court that all 5 officers who had been suspended in the aftermath of the Chinnaswamy stampede had been suspended for their failure to act based on information regarding the gathering of people, leading to the stampede, and not merely for misconduct.

The state government had filed the present plea challenging the Central Administrative Tribunal's (CAT) order quashing the suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikash over the stampede near Chinnaswamy Stadium ahead of the RCB team's 2025 IPL victory celebration in May.

A division bench of Justice SG Pandit and Justice TM Nadaf posted the matter for Friday, upon noting that the inquiry commission report, though prepared, would have to first be placed before the Legislative Council.

State submitted that, though the officers were not expected to be fortune tellers, they failed to implement standard procedures despite having 24 hours' notice regarding the event. It was submitted that disciplinary action had already been contemplated against one of the officers, and that suspension at this stage was a preventive step being taken by the state.

Counsel for the respondents submitted that the event had begun with a presentation for the players at the Vidhan Soudha in the presence of all the state ministers, after which the crowd had gone to Chinnaswamy stadium. It was argued that if the government was happy with the first part of the program, they could not say that there was no reasonable apprehension to believe that the crowd would move towards the stadium.

Background

By the government's order dated 05.06.2025 other officers who were suspended included IPS officer B. Dayananda (Additional Director General & Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru City, Bengaluru), IPS officer Shekar H Tekkannavar (Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Division, Bengaluru City), C. Balakrishna (Assistant Commissioner of Police, Cubbon Park, Bengaluru) and A.K. Girish (Police Inspector, Cubbon Park Police Station, Bengaluru) was also suspended.

The State had earlier argued before the high court that even before the final IPL match began, RCB had submitted an application to police officers outlining their proposed victory celebration (if they win), and from that point onward, the officers began acting as 'servants of RCB', making bandobast security arrangements without even first asking who had authorised the public event.