Bengaluru: A senior police officer had warned the Siddaramaiah government against holding the felicitation for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at Vidhana Soudha, according to a letter that surfaced Sunday.
The Vidhana Soudha police had intimated the government about the shortage of personnel, lack of CCTVs and the paucity of time as it had to coordinate with other departments like traffic among others, the letter shows.
“Royal Challengers Bengaluru have a nationwide fan following. There is a shortage of security personnel and this could pose a problem since the event is being held in a hurry and lakhs of fans are expected to turn up,” M.N.Karibasavana Gouda, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Vidhana Soudha Security, said in a letter dated 4 June.
The opinion expressed in the letter—a copy of which is with ThePrint—contradicts the government’s claims that the confusion arose due to a lack of clarity from law enforcement agencies.
It appears the letter is a report from the police responding to earlier requests from the government about their perspective on the proposal to hold the felicitation programme with such a short notice.
The letter adds to the pressure piling on the Siddaramaiah government, which blames the police. It has suspended five senior officials, including Bengaluru commissioner B.Dayananda, and filed cases against RCB, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and others for lapses which led to the Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede.
Siddaramaiah even fired his political secretary, K.Govindraj, allegedly for insisting on going ahead with the celebrations and later telling the media the exact opposite.
On Sunday, he told the media that his government had taken action against those who were found guilty of dereliction of duty.
The Karnataka chief minister said that the DCP, Vidhana Soudha, had raised some concerns in his report but added that the police would make necessary arrangements if the government goes ahead with the programme.
“I did not get that mail. It went to the DPAR secretary, but, of course, I was told about it and I asked for it to be given. But this was (the event) in front of Vidhana Soudha. Did any incident take place in Vidhana Soudha?” Siddaramaiah asked.
The government, the CM said, suspended police officers since they did not do their job properly and did not keep him in the loop.
Siddaramaiah said that KSCA had invited him to the event at Vidhana Soudha. He added that though the first death was reported in the hospital at 3.50 p.m. (Wednesday) but he got to know it only at 5.45 p.m.
Eleven people were killed and several more injured in the stampede that took place Wednesday evening. The opposition continues to demand the resignations of Siddaramaiah, his deputy D.K.Shivakumar and Home Minister G.Parameshwara.
‘Order officials not to bring family’
There has been widespread criticism of Siddaramaiah’s decision to single out the police, including Dayananda who has a reputation of being a hardworking officer.
On Friday, a police constable protested outside Vidhana Soudha, holding a picture of B.R.Ambedkar and tying a black band on his arm. The constable was held but let off later. At least three former Bengaluru police commissioners have come out in the open, criticising Siddaramaiah’s decision to sack Dayananda and demoralising the entire police force.
According to reports, the RCB and KSCA management had sought permission on 3 June prior to the team even winning in the finals later that evening. The police, however, denied permission. But RCB, its entertainment partner DNA, and the KSCA are alleged to have posted details of the victory celebrations on social media at around 7 a.m. on 4 June despite no clearance.
This, the government said, allegedly led to lakhs of fans turning up to the event even though the stadium capacity is just around 35,000. But this had not stopped the government from holding its earlier planned felicitation of the Indian Premier League (IPL) winners on the steps of Vidhana Soudha, the state’s secretariat.
The DCP report, meanwhile, also states that there were high chances that political leaders would also call their family members to the event. Siddaramaiah’s grandson was seen at the event, trying to get a picture with RCB’s Virat Kohli.
The police suggested that the government declare a half-day off for government officials and also instruct them not to bring their families to the event.
“On 4 June, the Vidhana Soudha police wrote to the chief secretary, clearly stating that the event was organised in haste, and due to a staff shortage, security arrangements would be compromised. They had also recommended prohibiting the event,” R.Ashoka, the Leader of the Opposition, told reporters Sunday.
This is an updated version of the report with the chief minister’s statement.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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