Royal Challengers Bengaluru won their maiden IPL title in their 18th season on June 3, defeating Punjab Kings, leading to massive celebrations across Bengaluru city.
The following day on June 4th, the team held a victory parade from the airport to M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. While thousands of people turned out to witness the historic moment, the celebrations quickly turned tragic.
A massive stampede occurred at the entrance of the M Chinnaswamy stadium, leading to the loss of 11 lives and injuring over 60 people. The incident shocked the entire nation and has now become the subject of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry. Several RCB officials were taken into custody for questioning.
Also Read: Grief in Bengaluru: Stampede at RCB Parade Claims Lives, Cricketing World Reacts
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Rahul Dravid Opens up!
Among those who expressed grief was former Indian cricketer and head coach Rahul Dravid. A Bengaluru native and a former captain of the RCB franchise, Dravid spoke to NDTV about the tragedy.
“Very disappointing. It's very sad. Bengaluru is a sports-passionate city. I come from here. People over here love all sports, not just cricket. They follow all the sports and also all the sporting teams, be it a football team or a kabaddi team. It's really heartbreaking that such an unfortunate incident happened. Our thoughts go out to everyone who unfortunately lost their lives and those who were injured,” Dravid said.
Also read: RCB issues an official statement after stampede outside Chinnaswamy Stadium kills fans
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Dravid, who led RCB in the inaugural IPL seasons before moving to Rajasthan Royals, called the incident a "huge tragedy" and emphasized that such events should never happen again.
High Court posed 9 major questions to RCB management
The case is currently being investigated by the CBI, and the Karnataka High Court has since posed 9 major questions to Royal Challengers Bengaluru Management and the Karnataka State Government. These included whether proper permission was obtained for the victory celebration and the safety arrangements made for the crowd during the victory parade.
Also Read: RCB Head of Marketing Nikhil Sosale Nabbed at Bengaluru Airport Over Chinnaswamy Stampede
