Bengaluru Stampede Case: RCB's Nikhil Sosale Granted Interim Bail; Faces Further Investigation

Nikhil Sosale, a senior official with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), was granted interim bail on Thursday by the Karnataka High Court in connection with the June 4 stampede that claimed 11 lives and injured dozens more during the IPL team's victory celebrations. He was arrested on June 6 two days after the incident.

Sosale, along with two officials from event management firm DNA Networks, was released under strict conditions, including the mandatory surrender of their passports. Karnataka High Court on Thursday declared the arrest of Nikhil Sosale of RCB and others illegal

The court’s decision comes amid mounting scrutiny over the handling of the event that drew an uncontrollable crowd outside Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The defence argued that the arrests were politically motivated and carried out "on the orders of the Chief Minister [Siddaramaiah]" without sufficient investigation or evidence pointing to Sosale’s direct responsibility in the tragedy.

Police maintain that permission for the victory parade at the stadium had been denied in advance, but that RCB’s announcement of free entry passes led to a massive turnout—far exceeding the stadium’s 35,000-seat capacity. The First Information Report (FIR) states that the chaos at multiple entry gates resulted in a fatal stampede, with the bulk of the casualties occurring at gates 2, 2A, 6, 7, 15, 17, 18, 20, and 21.

RCB, along with DNA Networks and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), has been named in the FIR. Following public outcry, KSCA treasurer E.S. Jairam and secretary A. Shankar resigned on June 7, accepting "moral responsibility" for the lapses in event coordination.

Has RCB issued apology over stampede?

Though RCB has not made any public statements since issuing a brief apology the day after the tragedy, ESPN has reported that parent company Diageo is reportedly preparing for an internal investigation involving all top-level management, including Sosale.