Bengaluru Stampede | 'Made Scapegoat; Suspension As A Measure Of Punishment Impermissible': ACP Vikash Kumar To Karnataka HC

Defending the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) order quashing his suspension, IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikas today submitted before the Karnataka High Court that he had been made a scapegoat by the Government, as someone had to be blamed for the 'unfortunate' stampede near Chinnaswamy stadium ahead of the RCB team's 2025 IPL victory celebration."Someone from the Top Police establishment had to be made a scapegoat, so they chose the top officials...", Senior Counsel Dhayan Chinnappa submitted.Referring to the course of events leading up to the stampede, Chinnappa said, "Top government people visited the Airport, received the team members, they were felicitated at Vidhan Soudha, and then they were taken to the stadium, and then this incident occurred". He admitted that the tragedy was 'unfortunate' and unfolded within 5-10 minutes. "State's counsel says that the incident was of the magnitude that the city had never seen...The entire incident happened in 5-10 mins, it was unfortunate...There are so many views, this could have been done, that could have been done...But whatever could have been done, was done", he submitted Furthermore, he strongly objected to the rationale behind his suspension as he submitted that suspension as a measure of punishment can't be ordered as was done in the instant case. Chinnappa argued: "The suspension order refers to 'accountability', not 'dereliction of duty'. You suspended us pending magisterial inquiry finding dereliction of duty by officers. If your stand is 'accountability', you wanted to punish us, make us scapegoats.”. Further elaborating on this point, Chinnappa contended that when suspension is used merely to 'ensure accountability' without following a disciplinary enquiry, it effectively becomes punitive, which is impermissible in law. He added that accountability can't be achieved by the governemnt by suspending someone.In this regard, he specifically referred to the Government's order, which mentions that the suspension was being ordered to 'ensure accountability'.After the tragedy, he submitted, efforts were made to ensure that the public didn't leave the stadium abruptly and that orderly dispersal of the remaining crowd was ensured. Due to a paucity of time, he could not complete his arguments, which will now continue tomorrow.Pre-lunch hearing Earlier today, the State Government justified the suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikas arguing that the cops acted as the 'servants' of the RCB and their actions caused embarrassment to the Government.Senior Counsel PS Rajagopal (for the State government) submitted before a bench of Justice SG Pandit and Justice TM Nadaf that even before the final IPL match began, RCB had submitted an application to police officers outlining their proposed victory celebration (if they win), and from that point onward, the officers began acting as 'servants of RCB', making bandobast security arrangements without even first asking who had authorised the public event."The most straightforward thing for the IPS Officer to tell was: you (RCB Management) have not taken permission. Had they (cops) done that, then they (RCB) may have come before the High Court, and the law would have taken its own course", he submitted.He submitted that RCB's first IPL win was emotionally charged and expected to attract massive crowds, and despite this, officers failed to alert the public about safety measures or coordinate with higher authorities, which ultimately led to embarrassment and operational failure.Further, relying on Section 35 of the State Police Act [Power to prohibit certain acts for prevention of disorder], he submitted that the police had "all the power to take action", which they failed to exercise, and this amounted to a clear dereliction of duty.Rajagopal also pointed out that no guidance had been taken from senior officials. "The root of the matter is that the matter was not discussed with higher-ups", he submitted.More about State's submission here : Bengaluru Stampede | 'Acted Like RCB's Servant, Embarrassed Govt': State Defends IPS Officer's Suspension Before Karnataka HCBackground of the caseThese submissions were made in a plea moved by the State government challenging the Central AdministrativeTribunal's (CAT) order quashing the suspension of IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikash, who was held responsible by the state government along with four others for alleged negligence in the stampede near Chinnaswamy Stadium, ahead of RCB's IPL victory celebration.The mishap, which occurred on June 4, claimed 11 lives and left 33 injured.Briefly put, it was on July 1 that the CAT quashed the suspension, observing there was no convincing material showing negligence.The Tribunal found that the Police did not get time to make arrangements since RCB suddenly posted about the event on social media without seeking prior permission.The tribunal, while prima facie finding RCB to be responsible for the gathering of...

Bengaluru Stampede | 'Made Scapegoat; Suspension As A Measure Of Punishment Impermissible': ACP Vikash Kumar To Karnataka HC

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