No coercive against RCB, DNA till June 12 in Bengaluru stampede case, says Karnataka HC
Bengaluru, Jun 9 (PTI): The Karnataka High Court on Monday restrained officials from taking any coercive action against RCB and event partner DNA Entertainment Pvt Ltd till June 12, in the stampede incident near M Chinnaswamy Stadium that killed 11 people.
The court adjourned the hearing on petitions filed by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and DNA Entertainment Pvt Ltd to June 12. In the interim, no coercive action should be taken against the officials of the concerned, it said.
RCB and DNA had moved the court challenging the FIR registered against them in connection with the June 4 stampede that occurred during a celebratory event to mark RCB's maiden IPL triumph a day earlier.
Justice S R Krishna Kumar posted the matter for hearing on June 12.
"There is a gentleman's understanding -- don't do anything till we take up the matter," the judge told the state government, warning against unnecessary arrest. The court also noted that the petition involving Nikhil Sosale, Head of Marketing at RCB and already under arrest, would be taken up separately at 10.30 am on Tuesday (June 10).
The hearing witnessed a sharp exchange of words between senior advocate C V Nagesh, representing RCB and DNA, and Advocate General (AG) Shashikiran Shetty for the state.
Nagesh argued that there was no prima facie case against his clients, and that the allegations were largely composite, involving all three parties -- KSCA, RCB and DNA.
"Except for one sentence, the entire FIR makes composite allegations against all three. There's no independent case made out against RCB or DNA," Nagesh said, adding that it was not petitioner, but the chief minister of Karnataka who had invited everybody.
But AG Shetty said it was the posts on 'X' by both RCB and DNA that brought people to the stadium. "Thirteen crore people saw it," the AG said, maintaining that RCB had announced the event without required permissions.
"At 10.30 am, without informing the government, they tweeted that there would be a rally. Five lakh people came, and only 21 gates were there. If they had simply opened the gates, lives could have been saved," he argued.
However, Justice Krishna Kumar observed that, "Today, we are not in a position to say whether it was the tweet or the CM's invitation or something else that caused the incident. It's too premature. We're only dealing with a plea for protection from arrest."
He also repeatedly asked the state to clarify how the allegations against RCB and DNA differed from those against Karnataka State Cricket Association, to whom the court had earlier granted protection from arrest.
"Except for that one sentence about free passes, everything else seems to be composite," the judge said after reading the FIR and supporting documents.
"At one point, the AG expressed concern that the petitioners could destroy evidence if granted protection". The judge responded that the inquiry commission would eventually determine accountability.
"The investigation will reveal who among the three -- RCB, DNA, KSCA -- is responsible. If it turns out the tweet had no impact, what then?" Justice Krishna Kumar asked.
Meanwhile, Nagesh argued that the FIR invokes offences requiring a deliberate act, not mere omission. "There is no overt act that amounts to an offence here," he said, citing legal provisions that do not criminalise such omissions outside specific statutory frameworks like the Factories Act.
On June 12, apart from hearing petitions filed by RCB and DNA against the FIR, one more related petition, involving a person already arrested, will also be heard.
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VHP slams Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge for 'money laundering' comment on RSS
Nagpur (PTI): The Vishva Hindu Parishad on Monday slammed Karnataka Congress minister Priyank Kharge for linking the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh to money laundering and asserted such statements were part of a strategy to insult patriotic organisations and defame patriots.
Kharge, while speaking at an event in Bengaluru on Sunday, cited the RSS' "network of more than 2,500 organisations, they are from America, England" to allege "these people are into money laundering".
Addressing a press conference here, VHP national organisational secretary Milind Parande said such statements will reduce the acceptance in society of those making them.
"They are trying to increase their credibility and trying to indulge in appeasement (with such remarks), both of which will not succeed. There are many forces and persons in India who have a problem with the awakening of Hindutva. They are coming up with such nonsense. Using such words and insulting patriotic organisations shows their intellectual bankruptcy," he said.
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"It will reduce their acceptance in society. What he (Kharge) said is absolutely false and even they know it. But they do it as a strategy to defame patriots. The people of Karnataka must think whether such people should be brought back to power. Hence, the VHP always asserts those who believe in the interests of Hindus must be in power at the Centre and in the states," Parande added.
Asked about the BNP winning polls in Bangladesh and whether it will improve the conditions of the Hindus there, Parande said it is expected that the community is protected irrespective of who is in power. So far, people there have been incapable of protecting Hindus, he said in reference to attacks on the community since the Sheikh Hasina government fell following an uprising in August 2024.
Asserting that most of the violence has been sponsored by political parties, Parande said, "The Hindu community is in a very dangerous situation in Bangladesh."
He also refused to comment on the face-off between the Uttar Pradesh government and Swami Avimukteshwaranand during Magh Mela festivities in Prayagraj. A controversy erupted on Mauni Amavasya morning at the Sangam Nose when police, citing heavy crowd pressure, allegedly stopped the seer from proceeding to the Sangam in a palanquin along with a large number of supporters.
The VHP as a practice does not give a statement on disputes between saints as it would not be appropriate, Parande said.
Without taking the name of Maharashtra Congress chief Harshwardhan Sapkal, the VHP leader said it was surprising anyone from the state can make such a remark about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The Congress leader has courted controversy by equating 18th Mysuru ruler Tipu Sultan with the founder of the Maratha Empire.
On some persons sprinkling cow urine to purify a temple in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar following the visit of Muslim Shiv Sena MLA Abdul Sattar in Sillod on Mahashivratri on Sunday, Parande said places of worship must be visited by those who have faith.
Without genuine sentiment, it becomes a mere political stunt, he said.
"Religion should never be exploited for political gain, as that insults faith," Parande said while not commenting on the 'purification' episode linked to the incident.
