SHIVAMOGGA: Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) zonal convenor and MLC DS Arun on Wednesday said the state government alone will be held responsible if the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) home matches of IPL are shifted to Pune from Bengaluru.
“It had been seven months since the inquiry commission tabled its report on the stampede at Chinnaswamy Stadium. Yet, the state government is unconcerned and is not ready to utter a word against the shifting of RCB home matches to Pune,” he said.
Arun said the victory parade to celebrate RCB’s first IPL title was fixed on June 4. “The state government, without considering the consequences, granted permission for the celebrations. In reality, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar wanted to click pictures with RCB players.
So, they granted permission and called the fans to join the celebrations without preparing safety protocols. Chinnaswamy is one of the best stadiums of the KSCA, with a capacity to seat 40,000. Yet, these numbers were exceeded, leading to a stampede.
The family of DK Shivakumar and other politicians were seen taking pictures with players as people cried for help. Later, the government shunned its responsibility, saying that it was not a government event,” Arun said.
“The inquiry commission had declared that IPL franchise RCB, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and event organiser DNA Entertainment Networks Private Limited were responsible for the stampede. It has been seven months since the incident happened and the report has not been disclosed.
Now, because of the government’s negligence, the RCB wants its home matches to be held in Pune instead of Bengaluru. This will be a big blow to the state’s revenue and fame, as well as a big disappointment and betrayal done to cricket fans,” he said.