Karnataka High Court Halts Final Report Submission in RCB Case

Court Ruling on RCB Incident

The Karnataka High Court has intervened to prevent the state government from submitting a final report regarding the case involving Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and DNA Entertainment Networks Limited without prior approval. This case is linked to a stampede that occurred last month outside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

While hearing several petitions related to the incident, Justice S.R. Krishna Kumar stated, “List the case again for hearing on August 5. In the meantime, the respondents are instructed not to file the final report without the court's permission. The interim orders previously issued in all petitions will remain in effect until the next hearing date.”

The attorney representing the RCB franchise and its managing entity, Royal Challengers Sports Private Limited (RCSPL), informed the court that the company is fully cooperating with the investigation.

However, they expressed concerns that filing a charge sheet at this stage could cause serious and irreversible damage to the company's reputation. Consequently, the court directed the government not to proceed with the final report without explicit verbal permission. In response, the state’s lawyer assured the bench that no immediate action would be taken.

Justice Kumar noted that premature submission of the report could compel the petitioners to seek new legal remedies. During the proceedings, the lawyer for DNA Entertainment Networks Limited mentioned that the FIR against the company is adversely affecting its daily operations.

The lawyer added that the company is required to disclose the pending criminal case in all its contractual dealings, leading to complications. After considering arguments from all parties, the court decided to continue the previously granted interim relief and scheduled the next hearing for August 5. The stampede outside the cricket stadium resulted in the deaths of 11 individuals and left many others injured.