RCB official challenges arrest as court grants interim relief to KSCA administrators

The Karnataka High Court on Friday granted interim protection from arrest to key office bearers of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) in connection with the deaths of 11 people and injuries to many more in a stampede during the event held on Wednesday to celebrate Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) winning the IPL.

Justice S R Krishna Kumar, who heard the petition seeking to quash the FIR against the KSCA office-bearers, restrained the police from taking any coercive action against the officials until the next hearing. The court also directed the petitioners to cooperate with the ongoing investigation. The petition to quash the FIR will be taken up again on June 16.

The KSCA 's lead office bearers comprise: former Karnataka spinner Raghuram Bhatt (president), K Sriram (vice-president), A Shankar (secretary), ES Jairam (treasurer) and former umpire Shahvir Tarapore (joint secretary).

Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty, who appeared on behalf of the state, clarified that the police had no immediate plans to arrest anyone and sought permission for the investigation to continue.

The counsel defending KSCA raised concern over the recent arrest of Nikhil Sosale, the marketing and revenue head of RCB, claiming it indicated a targeted approach. The state advocate general responded that Sosale had been apprehended at the airport while allegedly attempting to flee to Dubai.

The KSCA plea argued that the FIR naming them was a "knee-jerk" reaction by the police under pressure from the state government. A related petition filed by Sosale and RCB was also heard on Friday. However, the court adjourned the matter to Monday without passing any orders.

The High Court has also taken suo motu cognisance of the incident and has asked the state to file a status report. That matter will be heard on June 10.

The Bengaluru police arrested Sosale on Friday. The arrest followed the Karnataka state government suspending top police officials on Thursday, while appointing a new commissioner, Seemanth Kumar Singh. Sosale has challenged his arrest and approached the Karnataka High Court, according to Bar and Bench

In their FIR on Thursday, the Bengaluru police claim that they denied RCB permission to conduct their victory parade at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, around which the stampede occurred leading to casualties. RCB were listed as the first accused along with DNA Entertainment, the franchise's event partners, and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), which is in charge of the stadium premises.

As per the Bengaluru police, officers had been on duty around the stadium until 5:30am on June 4, the day after RCB's victory in the IPL final, and due to the difficulty of managing another large crowd, permission for the event was denied. "Despite this, KSCA, RCB, and DNA proceeded with the event, ignoring police instructions," the FIR said.

"Without any official permission, on June 4, RCB announced their celebration and victory parade on their social media and website, inviting fans to join. Once this news spread on TV channels and social media, we (Police) informed our senior officers and requested security and necessary arrangements."

According to the police, RCB's posting of free entry passes on their social media channels worsened the situation as the franchise hadn't informed the police or public about how passes would be distributed, causing confusion among the fans gathered outside.

There has been no official statement or reaction from the franchise since the arrest has been made. On Thursday evening, the state government as well as RCB, owned by liquor giants Diageo, announced a compensation of INR 10 lakh for the families of the deceased, while covering all medical expenses for the injured. ESPNcricinfo has reached out to Sosale and RCB for comment.