Today, On 12th June,In the Chinnaswamy stampede case, the Karnataka High Court said, “No arrest for now,” and stopped police action against RCB and DNA representatives.
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court temporarily barred the Bengaluru police from arresting or taking any coercive measures against officials from Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and the event management firm DNA in relation to the stampede that occurred at Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4.
Justice SR Krishna Kumar acknowledged the statement from the Special Public Prosecutor (SPP), confirming that the police would not act on two later FIRs filed regarding the incident.
The SPP noted that the investigation would only proceed with the FIR currently under examination by the Crime Investigation Department (CID).
Also Read: CID to Probe Bengaluru Stadium Stampede That Killed 11: Karnataka Govt Tells High Court
The Court recorded in its order,
“It is also submitted that since the investigation is underway, they [police] will not proceed further in terms of crime numbers 124/2025 and 125/2025 since the contents of the FIR and the subject are one and the same and they arise out of the same action,”
Additionally, the Court instructed the petitioners, RCB and DNA, to cooperate with the ongoing investigation.
Justice Kumar stated that this arrangement would remain in effect until the next hearing on July 8.
The decision was made in response to petitions from Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited (RCSPL), which owns RCB, and the event management company DNA. DNA had organized the victory celebrations for the RCB team at Chinnaswamy Stadium following their recent Indian Premier League (IPL) win.
Both companies are facing accusations related to the stampede, which occurred as approximately 500,000 individuals flocked to the stadium to celebrate RCB’s first IPL victory in 18 years, despite the venue’s capacity of around 33,000. The tragic event resulted in 11 fatalities and 56 injuries.
The State has held the event organizers accountable for not properly notifying authorities about the event, while the organizers have countered that the State failed to take adequate measures to manage the expected crowd size.
A criminal case has been filed against the officials of RCB, DNA, and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), which oversees stadium rentals. All accused parties subsequently approached the High Court to challenge the criminal charges. The KSCA has already received interim relief from the High Court regarding this issue.
Moreover, several officials from DNA and RCB, including RCB’s marketing head Nikhil Sosale, who were previously arrested, have been granted interim bail.
In a notable development, the High Court has initiated a suo motu case concerning the situation.
A Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice V Kameswar Rao and Justice CM Joshi has formally included KSCA, RCB, and DNA as parties to this suo motu case. The Court also indicated plans to appoint an amicus to assist in the proceedings and previously requested a status report from the State detailing the factors that contributed to the stampede and measures to prevent similar incidents in the future.
The State has submitted a report under seal, and the matter is scheduled for the next hearing on June 23, Monday.
Case Title: Nikhil Sosale AND State of Karnataka and connected matters, WP 16371/2025 c/w WP 16469/2025
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