Stampede at Chinnaswamy Stadium Claims 11 Lives
What was supposed to be a day of joy for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) after their historic IPL 2025 win turned tragic on Wednesday afternoon. A stampede outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru resulted in at least 11 deaths and over 50 injuries, as thousands of fans rushed the stadium gates hoping to catch a glimpse of their heroes.
RCBβs Insensitive Social Media Post Sparks Outrage
Amid the chaos and rising death toll, RCB posted a celebratory video on X (formerly Twitter) showing fans welcoming the team, captioned:
“This welcome is what pure love looks like.”
The post, which came hours before any official acknowledgment of the stampede from the franchise, triggered massive backlash on social media. Fans and critics alike called out the insensitivity, leading RCB to delete the post swiftly.
Karnataka CM Visits Hospital, Crowd Control Issues Persist
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D.K. Shivakumar visited Bowring Hospital to meet those injured in the incident. Police confirmed that the overcrowding delayed ambulances from reaching hospitals promptly.
The stampede reportedly began when fans surged in from multiple gates. Despite heavy police deployment, the force struggled to manage the massive crowd. Some people even climbed trees to witness the event, and one fan suffered a leg injury while trying to scale a gate.
Felicitation Ceremony Goes On, Parade Cancelled Earlier
The government had already cancelled RCBβs open-bus parade from Vidhana Soudha to Chinnaswamy Stadium due to safety concerns. However, the felicitation event at the stadium still drew huge crowds, further complicating crowd management.
Police had to resort to a mild lathi charge to control the situation near Vidhana Soudha. Authorities are still investigating the full circumstances of the incident.
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said a senior police officer at the scene.
