Victory laps turns death trap
Pictures by Robert Maria Clement and Karthikeyan Sairam
A moment of joy spiraled into chaos as Bengaluru came out in full force to celebrate RCB's first-ever IPL title. What was meant to be a victory parade quickly turned into a deadly crush, claiming 11 lives and injuring several others, due to gaps in security protocol, a severe lack of planning, and lakhs of fans flooding the streets.
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The situation was compounded by widespread confusion. Earlier, conflicting reports about the parade's cancellation surfaced, only for news to emerge minutes later that it was back on. To add to the disarray, Vidhana Soudha was announced as a second venue. As the parade finally began, the first death was reported. Further complicating matters, a lack of network connectivity meant many people didn't receive crucial notifications about the conflicting plans, exacerbating the already perilous situation.
Once again, fan frenzy is in focus, highlighting how, coupled with civic unpreparedness, it can lead to devastating consequences.
The psychology behind fan frenzy
The euphoria of a major win, like RCB's triumph, often sees fans swept up in an overwhelming tide of emotion, sometimes leading to tragic consequences, says Shobhika Jaju, psychologist and psychotherapist. 'When we're caught up in a moment of excitement, there's a surge of dopamine, the feel-good chemical, which makes the moment feel incredibly rewarding.
In these moments, we're not necessarily ignoring safety because we don't care — rather, we're fully immersed in the thrill.
'
'The stampede a result of poor planning, understaffed police'
Urban strategist and general manager at Namma Bengaluru Foundation, who was present among those who received Bengaluru's home team at the airport, points out, 'Despite RCB reaching the semi-finals, there was no proper strategy for a potential victory. The police were understaffed. But we cannot blame the police; they were stretched thin because there were two celebration locations, which were completely unwarranted.
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That's where the politicians failed. The mismanagement by the KSCA was another significant failure. It's truly tragic that despite an 18-year wait for this victory, lives were lost. Bengaluru, despite its IT capital status, often functions like a 'glorified village' when it comes to capacity building and infrastructure management. We should have had drones, AI-powered crowd control, dedicated special buses, and better management of metro capacity.'
Urban Designer Naresh Narasimhan notes, 'The M Chinnaswamy Stadium can accommodate only about 30,000 people, but nearly 3 lakh people turned up; that's ten times the space available. The police force, already overworked and tired on the night of June 4, faced an impossible task. A delay of a day or two for the victory lap would have provided crucial time for proper planning and organisation.'
Virat mourns lives lost in stampede:
Reacting to the news, Virat Kohli took to Instagram to share, 'At a loss for words.
Absolutely gutted.'
Ahmedabad, Jun 04 (ANI): Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Virat Kohli, after the team's win in the Indian Premier League 2025 final match against Punjab Kings, at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. (ANI Photo)
Deeply anguished: RCB
In their official statement, Royal Challengers Bengaluru said, 'We are deeply anguished by the unfortunate incidents that have come to light through media reports regarding public gatherings all over Bengaluru in anticipation of the team's arrival this afternoon.
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