Karnataka Governor had planned...: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah involved in RCB celebration tragedy

A shocking development came to the fore that points a finger at the Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah regarding the deadly stampede during the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) celebration of their maiden IPL 2025 title triumph at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Sources from Raj Bhavan told India Today that the Governor of Karnataka had initially planned to host the Royal Challengers Bengaluru players at Raj Bhavan to honor their IPL 2025 heroics. But just as preparations were underway, the government informed the governor that the official ceremony would take place at Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the Karnataka Legislature in Bengaluru.

CM Siddaramaiah involved in Bengaluru stampede tragedy

Adding to the confusion, the Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had formally invited the Governor to attend the Vidhana Soudha event, making it clear that the state government was involved in organizing the ceremony to celebrate RCB’s maiden IPL title triumph.

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But adding to the twist, the chief minister had earlier claimed that the celebration wasn’t a government-organized event at all. Siddaramaiah had said the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) had invited the governor, not his government.

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The India Today report reads, “Karnataka Governor had planned to invite RCB players to Raj Bhavan for a felicitation ceremony, but the state government informed him that the event would be held at Vidhana Soudha instead, sources in Raj Bhavan exclusively told India Today.”

The report added, “Raj Bhavan sources also revealed that the Chief Minister officially invited the Governor to participate in the Vidhana Soudha event. This, however, contradicts Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s earlier statement, where he said the felicitation was not a government event and that the Karnataka State Cricket Association had invited the governor.”

Karnataka High Court denies relief to Nikhil Sosale

Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court has decided not to grant immediate relief to Nikhil Sosale, the marketing head of the Bengaluru team. As reported by the PTI, the Karnataka High Court has set June 11th as the date for its final decision on his case.

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Sosale had filed a petition challenging the legality of his arrest by the Central Crime Branch early on June 6th. He also claimed that the police action was ordered due to political influence.

Earlier, Siddaramaiah insisted that the RCB celebration event wasn't his idea. The CM claimed that he only gave the go-ahead after being asked by the chief secretary, and police agreed. He emphasized that it was a KSCA-organized event, and they invited him, just like they invited the governor, so he simply attended their event.

Siddaramaiah blames KSCA and RCB for Bengaluru tragedy

He insisted that he had no further role beyond attending the event. The Karnataka CM distanced himself from the tragedy, stating he wasn't informed of key details. He approved the event only after the DPR department's permission and blamed the Bengaluru police, KSCA, and RCB for the incident.

Siddaramaiah stated, “That letter never reached me. The DPR department gave permission. I was informed and said, “Go ahead,” but I never directed it to be held in front of Vidhana Soudha.

Earlier, Bengaluru police reportedly suggested staging the celebration on Sunday, but sources revealed that the government ignored the request and held the RCB felicitation the day after their IPL triumph on June 4, leading to the chaos that left 11 people dead and several injured.