Moments after the stampede near M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru claimed multiple lives and left several injured, Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said the crowd was "uncontrollable".

Confronted by media persons at the venue, Shivakumar said: "I watched from the airport to the Vidhan Soudha, I don't think this is a controllable crowd. I apologise to the people of Bengaluru and Karnataka; we wanted to do a procession, but the crowd was too uncontrollable. So we dropped the procession. The police also was finding it very difficult. So we stopped the procession. We had brought an open-top vehicle."

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When specifically questioned about the deaths in the stampede, the Deputy Chief Minister quipped, "I cannot confirm anything. Just now, from the Vidhan Soudha to here, I had to bring the Secretary and President in my vehicle. The crowd was so much. We had arranged over 5000 policemen. It is a young, vibrant crowd. We can't use lathis."

What began as a joyous celebration of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) inaugural IPL title victory turned tragic today, as a stampede outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium resulted in at least seven deaths and numerous injuries.

Overwhelming crowds gathered for a felicitation event, organized by the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), leading to chaotic scenes at multiple entry points.

The immense pressure from the throngs of fans, eager to catch a glimpse of their favourite stars, triggered a stampede-like situation. Police were forced to intervene with a lathi-charge (baton charge) in an attempt to control the surging masses. In desperation, many fans were seen scaling fences in a desperate bid to find a vantage point.

Several injured individuals have been hospitalized. The full extent of the injuries and the precise sequence of events leading to the stampede are still under investigation. The tragic turn of events has cast a somber shadow over what was meant to be a historic day for RCB fans.