Desk Report,
Danger seems to be lurking around Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Kohli’s Bengaluru is going to be ‘banned’ in its own ground
The Indian state government of Karnataka has blamed the franchise for the stampede outside the stadium during the IPL championship celebration on June 4, which left 11 people dead and at least 70 injured. The franchise’s marketing head Nikhil Sosale has been arrested. Even the team’s biggest star Virat Kohli has been charged. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has also issued a show cause notice to the owners. Bengaluru, which has been going through a difficult time since winning the IPL for the first time, has received another piece of bad news. The inquiry commission headed by Justice John Michael Cunha has declared Kohli’s home ground, M Chinnaswamy Stadium, unsuitable for hosting major events and recommended that matches be stopped there. If the Karnataka government takes action according to the commission’s report, Kohli will not be able to play at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in the 2026 IPL. The Deccan Herald, a daily published from Karnataka, reported that the investigation commission has concluded that the design and structure of the M Chinnaswamy Stadium is unsuitable and unsafe for mass gatherings.
Kohli’s Bengaluru is going to be ‘banned’ in its own ground
Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Krunal Pandya, and Phil Salter reached the Chinnaswamy Stadium on the same day as the ‘Victory Parade’ from the Vidhan Soudha in Bengaluru city. That morning, the franchise promoted Kohli on their social media pages. In the video post, Kohli invited fans and supporters to join the title celebrations.
According to the Deccan Herald report, although the stadium has a capacity of 32,000 spectators, about 300,000 people turned up at Kohli’s invitation, which was several times more than expected. The inquiry commission said that any venue in the future will have to comply with international standards. For this, they have listed a few essential things. They are—
☞ A separate path from the main road should be built for the movement of spectators in the stadium area so that everyone can come and go in a row and in an orderly manner.
☞ There should be sufficient gates for entry and exit.
☞ There should be integrated public transport access points and tourist centers.
☞ Adequate parking facilities and infrastructure should be built to handle the overflowing spectators.
The commission said in its report that the continued hosting of large-scale events at the current venue (M Chinnaswamy Stadium) until such infrastructural changes are made poses a risk to public safety, urban mobility and emergency preparedness. The M Chinnaswamy Stadium, built on 32.79 acres of land, has been hosting international cricket since 1974. It has hosted 100 matches, including two IPL finals (in 2014 and 2016). The stadium is managed by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA). However, the stadium is owned by the Karnataka State Public Works Department, which leased the stadium to KSCA for 99 years in July 1999.
The commission also said that the stadium gates are directly connected to the footpath and the path is not wide at all. The huge crowd forced supporters to line up on the sidewalks and main roads, blocking pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Only 79 police officers were deployed to control the situation. Many of the police officers were not present when the crowd stampeded. The lack of security allowed miscreants to blend in with the crowd, increasing the risk.
