Bengaluru, 15 JUNE

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday announced a protest to be held at Freedom Park in Bengaluru on 17 June, calling for the resignation of Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar. The party alleges the two are directly responsible for the fatal stampede that occurred near the Chinnaswamy Stadium on 4 June during celebrations marking Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL victory.

The stampede, which erupted as nearly 2.5 lakh fans gathered to glimpse their cricketing heroes, left 11 dead and at least 56 injured. BJP leader and former Minister K Gopalaiah stated that police had formally advised the Chief Minister against hosting the event, yet the government chose to proceed. He termed the tragedy a “black spot in Karnataka’s history”.

Gopalaiah also criticised the State government’s move to restart the caste census, alleging it was a diversionary tactic to shift focus from the mishandling of the event. He demanded the government reveal how much taxpayers' money was spent on the previous census.

Separately, Leader of the Opposition R Ashoka wrote to the Chief Minister urging an emergency session of the legislature to discuss the incident. He cited public anxiety over crowd control and administrative failures, and called for a comprehensive debate on safety at public events.

Ashoka also alleged that multiple investigations had been launched merely to shield powerful figures and scapegoat officials, while calling for compensation and long-term safety reforms.