‘KSCA must act on 17 recommendations to hold events at Chinnaswamy stadium’: G Parameshwara

BENGALURU: Home Minister G Parameshwara on Wednesday said that the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) will be granted permission to hold events at M Chinnaswamy Stadium only if they act on the 17 recommendations made by the commission investigating the stampede.

Parameshwara said that despite the formation of a high-level committee and several discussions, no action has been taken by the KSCA so far.

Speaking to the reporters, G Parameshwara said, “Venkatesh Prasad met the Chief Minister and also met us. After the stampede incident, a commission was formed under the leadership of Justice John Michael D’Cunha. The commission gave several recommendations. We forwarded those recommendations to the KSCA, and they must respond to them. So far, it appears that no action has been taken”.

“Even when Venkatesh Prasad came recently, the matter was discussed. After that, we formed a high-level committee. It is a committee of senior officers from all departments. The committee visited the site. Not even a single recommendation had been fully implemented there”, Parameshwara said. Until the recommendations are fully implemented, permission for events will not be granted, he added.

“Therefore, the committee has decided that permission cannot be granted. It has to be strictly as per the law. Otherwise, it would mean the recommendations of the Cunha report are being ignored. All 17 recommendations have been conveyed to the KSCA; if they act accordingly, permission will be granted”, he said.

A day earlier, Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) announced that all the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) matches have been shifted from M Chinnaswamy Stadium to the BCCI Centre of Excellence, NCA on an interim basis, after the state’s cricket governing body was informed by police that the iconic stadium is “presently not finding favour” to hold matches, based on recommendations of the Review Committee.

In a statement, KSCA said, “The Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) has been informed by the Police authorities that, based on the recommendations of the Review Committee, permission for the conduct of Vijay Hazare Trophy matches at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium is presently not finding favour and hence permission is not forthcoming.”

After the stampede during the victory celebrations for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)’s maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) win earlier this year, the stadium was deemed “unfit for large-scale events” by the Justice John Michael D’Cunha Commission, which the Karnataka government tasked with investigating the incident. (ANI)