Players Had Commitments”: Siddaramaiah Aide On Short Notice For RCB Event

The size of the crowd that had gathered for the celebrations of RCB’s victory in the IPL was unexpected and “nobody could have visualised it”, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s Political Secretary Naseer Ahmed has said, after at least 11 people died in a stampede on Wednesday.

“Time was also very short, it was not announced. The match was yesterday, and today, in a very short time, whatever best possible arrangements could be made, were made,” he said. 

When NDTV asked if the celebration should have been held later, he said, “The situation was such, many of the players had commitments, they had to leave the country tonight. That was the situation and they insisted that they should leave today… RCB is a Bengaluru team, they just wanted to come and participate.”

Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the Indian Premier League on Tuesday – marking a major milestone for Virat Kohli and the team’s fans, who waited 18 years to lift the trophy – and huge crowds gathered at the Vidhana Soudha, which is the state legislature complex, and the Chinnaswamy Stadium to greet the team on Wednesday afternoon.