Kharge Calls Bengaluru Stampede An 'Accident', Asks 'Did Anyone Resign After Kumbh?'

Amid the ongoing political turmoil over the June 4 stampede at Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium, All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday termed the mishap "an accident", and compared the Karnataka government’s administrative steps with those during Uttar Pradesh’s Kumbh Mela in January, and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Did anyone resign for the stampede during the Kumbh Mela? I don’t speak much ... but lakhs took a dip in (Kumbh Mela) and I was criticised for one statement. We saw many dead bodies float away,” Kharge told reporters, as per media reports.

Further commenting on the BJP’s demand that Karnataka Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister and Home Minister should resign over the incident, Kharge said, "It is definitely wrong and our leaders have apologised."

“It’s not just the case here, but even during Covid. Did Yogi resign for the stampede? If anything is intentional, then we will accordingly take steps. But this is an accident, it is definitely wrong, and our leaders have also apologised,” he said.

Making a similar comparison on BJP's demand for his resignation over Bengaluru stampede, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah said, "40-50 people died in a stampede at Kumbh Mela. Did they demand the chief minister's resignation then? A bridge collapsed on the day of the inauguration, and 140 people died. Did they demand the prime minister's resignation then?... The BJP has a habit of misleading people by telling lies and demanding resignations. The BJP does politics in everything."

Siddaramaiah also called the BJP’s demand for resignations over the RCB stampede “purely political” and accused the Opposition of playing blame games after the tragic incident.

“They always manipulate facts and mislead the public with fake information. Their demand for resignations has no basis,” Siddaramaiah said.

On June 4, the stampede occurred when lakhs of RCB fans assembled at Bengaluru's Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4 to celebrate the franchise's maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) victory after a prolonged wait of 17 years.