Ramachandra Guha slams Karnataka government: ‘Top cop made a scapegoat in Bengaluru tragedy’

Historian Ramachandra Guha criticized the Karnataka government for suspending senior IPS officers after the Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede that killed 11.

Renowned historian and cricket author Ramachandra Guha has strongly criticised the Karnataka government for suspending senior IPS officers in the aftermath of the tragic stampede near Chinnaswamy Stadium, which claimed 11 lives during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s IPL victory celebrations on June 4.

Author and historian Ramachandra Guha.

What Ramachandra Guha said?

In a pointed post on X, Guha held both political leaders and cricket administrators accountable for the tragedy, accusing them of chasing "reflected glory" while pushing the blame onto police officers.

“Karnataka’s ruling politicians and cricket administrators are jointly responsible for Wednesday’s tragedy. Their greedy lust for reflected glory led to it. To make an outstanding officer a scapegoat is reprehensible,” Guha wrote.

Guha’s remarks came in the wake of the Karnataka government’s decision to suspend multiple senior police officials, including Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda, over alleged lapses in crowd management during the event. The state later appointed Seemant Kumar Singh as the new city police chief.

While the government justified the action as a response to “prima facie lapses,” many, including opposition leaders and former officials, have raised concerns over selective targeting of the police while ignoring the political spectacle that surrounded the event.

The IPL victory celebrations, which drew tens of thousands of fans to the heart of Bengaluru, have since turned into a major political flashpoint. BJP leaders, including Bengaluru South MP Tejasvi Surya and Bengaluru North MP Shobha Karandlaje, have launched sharp attacks on the Congress-led government, accusing CM Siddaramaiah and DCM DK Shivakumar of using the RCB win for political mileage while ignoring basic safety protocols.

Tejasvi Surya went a step further, posting a sarcastic jibe at the state leadership by suggesting that Siddaramaiah and DK Shivakumar should “start practising for the next IPL season,” after they were seen holding the IPL trophy during a ceremony inside Vidhana Soudha.

Meanwhile, the Bengaluru police have arrested RCB’s marketing head, Nikhil Sosale, for alleged negligence in organising the event without adequate coordination with law enforcement agencies.

Guha, who served briefly as a member of the BCCI-appointed Committee of Administrators in 2017, is known for his critical stance on cricket governance in India.