Siddaramaiah reveals what triggered Bengaluru stampede: '2-3 lakh people gathered'
Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday blamed overcrowding for the Bengaluru stampede, saying nearly two to three lakh people had congregated to celebrate the victory of the city's home team, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, in the Indian Premier League. He said 11 people died in the stampede and 33 sustained serious injuries.
"This was a major tragedy. People have died in a stampede. 11 lives have been lost, and 33 others are seriously injured. Around 14 people have received treatment at the outpatient facility. I visited the hospital. Such an incident should never have happened, and the government deeply regrets it," he said at a press conference.
The Congress leader said the turnout was far beyond what the government had anticipated.
"The turnout was far beyond what we anticipated. In front of Vidhana Soudha, nearly one lakh people had gathered, but there were no incidents there. However, at Chinnaswamy Stadium, there were casualties. No one, neither the Cricket Association nor the government, expected this, as the stadium has a seating capacity of about 35,000. We assumed only a slightly larger crowd would show up. But almost two to three lakh people gathered," he added.
This is a developing story.
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