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Allu Arjun gets bail in theatre stampede case
In all, 18 people, including Allu Arjun, his security team and the theatre management, were booked in connection with the incident.
The Nampally court in Hyderabad granted regular bail to top Telugu actor Allu Arjun on Friday in a case related to the stampede at the Sandhya Theatre on December 4 which resulted in the death of a 35-year-old woman during the premiere of his latest film Pushpa-2: The Rule, people familiar with the matter said.
The actor was arrested on December 13 in connection with the case and released from the jail on December 14 after the Telangana high court granted him interim bail for four weeks, which would end on January 10.
The second additional metropolitan sessions court judge, who reserved his judgment on December 30 after hearing the arguments over the actor’s regular bail petition, pronounced the verdict on Friday.
Speaking to reporters after the judgment, the actor’s advocate Ashok Reddy said, “The judge asked Allu Arjun to furnish two sureties, who shall execute bond for ₹50,000 each. He was also directed to cooperate with the police in the investigation.”
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As part of the bail conditions, the actor has been asked to appear before the investigating officer at Chikkadpally police station every Sunday between 10am and 1pm and refrain from influencing the witnesses under any circumstances, Reddy said, adding that the judge also cautioned him against making any public comments that might affect the investigation.
This incident sparked nationwide attention, and the Chikkadpally police registered a case under sections 105 and 118(1) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), based on the complaint by the deceased’s husband, M Bhaskar.
In all, 18 people, including Allu Arjun, his security team and the theatre management, were booked in connection with the incident. The actor was named as accused No. 11 (A-11) in the case and was produced before the Nampally court, which remanded him to 14-days judicial custody, following which, his lawyers moved the Telangana high court.
On December 24, the Hyderabad police questioned Allu Arjun for nearly four hours in connection with the Sandhya Theatre stampede case. A team of top police officials comprising Hyderabad deputy commissioner of police (central zone) Akshansh Yadav, Chikkadpally assistant commissioner of police Ramesh Kumar and senior inspector Raju Yadav questioned the actor.
On December 27, the actor filed a petition in the Nampally court seeking regular bail. He appeared before the court via video conference mode. Acting on the direction of the court, the public prosecutor filed a counter-affidavit on December 30, leading to arguments in the court.
Allu Arjun’s lawyer Niranjan Reddy told the court that Allu Arjun has no connection with the Sandhya Theater stampede incident. He clarified that the BNS Section 105 registered by the police in connection with the woman’s death is not applicable against him, as he was neither directly nor indirectly responsible for the Sandhya Theatre stampede. The lawyer further explained to the court that Allu Arjun was approximately 30m away from the site of the incident.
In the wake of the high court having already granted interim bail for four weeks, he had requested to be granted regular bail.
However, the public prosecutor argued that the stampede occurred solely because of Allu Arjun’s arrival, and the incident would not have happened otherwise. The prosecutor also argued that since Allu Arjun is an influential person, granting him bail might affect the investigation.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the Nampally court on Friday granted bail to Allu Arjun.
