CM Siddaramaiah announces suspension of Bengaluru Police Commissioner, orders arrest of RCB, KSCA & DNA executives

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday announced suspension of Bengaluru City Police Commissioner B Dayanand, additional commissioner (west) Vikash Kumar Vikash, DCP (central) Shekhar H Tekkannavar and other lower officials seeking to pin accountability on police officers for the ghastly incidents of stampede at Chinnaswamy stadium on Wednesday that left 11 persons dead and scores of fans injured.

The CM, addressing a press conference late evening, said the government has prima facie found these officers negligent in their duty.

He also announced a judicial inquiry led by retired high court judge Justice John Michael D'Cunha. He also said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) will take over the investigation of the two FIRs registered at Cubbon Park Police station related to the tragedy. The CID will probe the role of RCB, Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and DNA Entertainment Networks


The CM also ordered the arrest of the senior executives of RCB, KSCA and DNA Networks for what he said, organizing the felicitation event at the cricket stadium without adequate preparations, while asking the police to take stern legal action against them. The police began a lookout for top executives of these organisations.

The CM admitted to intelligence failure. “Such a tragedy had never occurred in my long political career since my days as an MLA… This tragedy has devastated me,” Siddaramaiah said after discussing Wednesday’s incident at the Cabinet meeting and later with a group of ministers, which also decided on the action as the government has come under heavy criticism from the Opposition parties and citizens.