logo
Indian state blames cricket team for deadly stampede

Indian state blames cricket team for deadly stampede

Gulf Today20-07-2025
State authorities blamed the management of India's Royal Challengers Bengaluru cricket team for last month's deadly stampede during celebrations for their first IPL title.
Eleven fans were crushed to death and more than 50 wounded in a stampede near the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium after hundreds of thousands packed the streets in the southern city of Bengaluru on June 4, to welcome home their hero Virat Kohli and his RCB cricket team.
Karnataka state authorities singled out the RCB, its partners and the state cricket association for their mismanagement of the event in a report made public on Thursday.
It said organisers had not submitted a "formal request" or provided enough detail for permission to be granted for the celebrations.
"Consequently, the permission was not granted," it said.
A boy lies unconscious following a stampede outside a cricket stadium in Bengaluru, India. Reuters
The team went ahead with its victory parade despite police rejecting RCB's request, according to the report.
AFP has been unable to contact RCB for comment.
Four people, including a senior executive at RCB, representatives of event organisers DNA and Karnataka State Cricket Association, were detained by police in the days following the stampede.
Players were parading the trophy near the stadium a day after their win over Punjab Kings in the final in Ahmedabad when the stampede occurred.
The dead were aged between 14 and 29.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it "absolutely heartrending" and Kohli, who top-scored in the final, was "at a loss for words" after it unfolded.
India coach Gautam Gambhir said he was never a fan of roadshows, and the authorities should not have allowed the mass celebrations if they weren't prepared.
Agence France-Presse
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Hamilton's Belgian GP nightmare gets worse
Hamilton's Belgian GP nightmare gets worse

Al Etihad

time2 days ago

  • Al Etihad

Hamilton's Belgian GP nightmare gets worse

26 July 2025 21:41 SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium (Reuters) Lewis Hamilton, last year's winner with Mercedes, apologised to Ferrari for an unacceptable performance after failing to get through the first phase of Belgian Grand Prix qualifying on seven-time world champion, who has yet to stand on the podium since his move to Maranello in January, will start 16th on Sunday after his best lap was deleted for exceeding track Briton had already endured a nightmare in Saturday's sprint race, starting 18th after a spin in qualifying at the penultimate corner. He finished is a five-time winner in Belgium, one off Michael Schumacher's record at the won at Spa last year after his teammate George Russell was disqualified from first when his car was found to be underweight."We made some changes, the car didn't feel terrible," Hamilton told Sky Sports television."And then from my side, another mistake... I've got to apologise to my team because it's just unacceptable to be out in both Q1S (first qualifying for the sprint and main race). "It's a very, very poor performance for me."Hamilton added that starting from the pit lane, allowing mechanics to work on the car before the race, would probably not improve matters."I don't think there's much we can do," he said. "So I just try and start from where I am and see where I can get from there."He questioned the actual offence, however, and said he would be taking it up with the stewards."I don't agree, no, but I'm out," he Charles Leclerc went through to the final shootout and qualified third, something he had not expected. "We thought we were quite a lot more back. We knew that we had something more in the car with the upgrade this weekend, but we still struggled yesterday. But that was a good lap," he said.

54 children swim from Morocco to Spanish enclave Ceuta
54 children swim from Morocco to Spanish enclave Ceuta

Gulf Today

time2 days ago

  • Gulf Today

54 children swim from Morocco to Spanish enclave Ceuta

At least 54 children and about 30 adults swam from Morocco to Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta in rough seas and fog, Spanish television reported on Saturday. Video footage on Spanish television channel RTVE showed Civil Guard launches making repeated rescue attempts to bring some of the swimmers to safety, while others swam across to the enclave. The children, who were mostly Moroccan, were taken to temporary centres in Ceuta, where authorities called for help from the central government in dealing with the latest arrivals. "Don't leave us alone. This is a matter of state. This has to be resolved," Juan Rivas of the Ceuta regional government told reporters on Saturday. A view shows migrants sailing on a boat in Ceuta in this screengrab. Reuters On Aug.26 last year, hundreds of migrants took advantage of a thick mist to swim to Ceuta from neighbouring Morocco, local police said. In 2021, one boy was seen floating on empty plastic bottles in his attempt to reach Ceuta. Spain's two enclaves on Morocco's Mediterranean coast, Ceuta and Melilla, share the European Union's only land borders with Africa. The enclaves sporadically experience waves of attempted crossings by migrants trying to reach Europe. Moroccan nationals detained during the crossings are immediately sent back to Morocco unless they are underage or seeking asylum. People from other nationalities are taken to special centres where they are given shelter and released after a few days. Three years ago, at least 23 people died in a stampede when about 2,000 migrants tried to storm into Melilla, pushing down the border fence. Reuters

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store