The Karnataka High Court on Thursday decided to register a suo motu case over the stampede that took place outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium at Bengaluru yesterday, which had led to the death of 11 people. .A Bench of Acting Chief Justice V Kameswar Rao and Justice CM Joshi also sought a status report on the matter from the State. The case will be heard next on June 10, Tuesday. .11 people died and 56 people were left injured after a stampede took place outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium yesterday, where a large crowd had gathered to greet the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) cricket team after they won the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Tuesday. Celebrations had been planned in Bengaluru to mark RCB's first victory in 18 years, and the team was slated to arrive at the stadium to meet fans on Wednesday. It is reported that fees were initially charged for entry into the stadium. However, after it was allegedly announced late in the day that free entry would be permitted, large crowds thronged the stadium's gates, leading to a stampede and the tragic loss of lives. The State government yesterday ordered a magisterial inquiry into the matter.Soon after, a public interest litigation (PIL) petition was filed over the incident before the High Court, seeking the conduct of an unbiased inquiry, supervised by a sitting judge, into the matter."Given the grave nature of the incident and the possibility of systemic administrative failures, it is imperative that an impartial judicial enquiry be conducted under the supervision of a sitting judge of this Hon’ble Court," the plea moved by advocate Lohith G Hanumapura, through his counsel, advocate Lohitaswa Banakar, said.Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Shobha Karandlaje, who presently serves as Union Minister of State for the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Ministry of MSM Enterprises, also wrote a letter to the High Court on the issue, urging it to take suo motu action..The matter was mentioned this morning when the State's Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty said that he would submit details on the steps taken so far in the aftermath of the stampede..The Court proceeded to post the matter for hearing in the afternoon. Several lawyers were present in court for the afternoon hearing, when they urged the Court to order an independent inquiry into the matter.Among those who argued was Senior Advocate Aruna Shyam."Let State clarify where they deployed ambulance etc. The person who was supposed to control mob is deputed to conduct inquiry now. Court may pass orders to appoint an independent inquiry agency," Shyam said..Another lawyer argued that the public needs answers on who decided to conduct the event, whether it was the State or the Karnataka Cricket Association."What is the obligation of State to felicitate players who have not played for country or State? Why they have conducted the programme at two places - Vidhan Soudha and the Chinnswamy stadium? What are the safety measures taken by State?" he added..Meanwhile, Advocate General Shetty assured the Court that the State is not taking an adversarial approach in the matter. A magisterial inquiry has been started since such an inquiry would be prompt, and a report can be placed in 15 days, he said.He added that members of the public and witnesses have been invited to give information to the inquiring officer. "We will video record everything for lordships' consideration. There is no question of hiding anything," the AG added. .The Court noted that it is important for the government to have a Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) in place to minimise the possibility of stampedes or such incidents, including steps to ensure that there are ambulances nearby and information readily available on the nearest hospital. AG Shetty replied that there were ambulances at the incident site, but that a crowd of over 2.5 lakh people showed up unexpectedly outside a stadium that was only meant to accommodate around 30,000 people. Therefore, the ambulances at the site were not enough. He assured that the State would focus on taking measures to tackle such incidents in future, adding that it has viewed the incident with utmost seriousness. He submitted that the State is not taking an adversarial approach in the matter and urged that case should not become a mudslinging match.The Court eventually decided to register a suo motu case in the matter..[Read Live Coverage]
