The recent stampede at a Hyderabad movie hall that claimed the life of a woman, is not entirely the fault of Telugu superstar Allu Arjun, the government and the police also had a role to play, an eyewitness of the tragedy has pointed out. Vijay who was at the spot on December 4 during the premiere of ‘Pushpa 2: The Rise’, explained several aspects of the situation that have not been widely known so far.
Speaking to NDTV, Vijay said, “It is not that Allu Arjun is completely at fault. So is the police and so is the government. It is the government who gave permission and who charges Rs 1100 per ticket and what did they give us in return? They gave us lathicharge… Instead of trying to blame each other, everybody has to own up to their mistakes”.
Close to 3000 people had gathered at the spot for a glimpse of Allu Arjun, whose PR team had made it “obvious” that he would be present for the premiere, he told NDTV.
The police station, he added, is just 1 km away from the spot where these 3000 people gathered. Even so, the police deployed only 20 to 25 personnel, who were assisting VIPs who came for the premiere, he said.
“They were trying to make way for the VIPs to enter the theatre and there was no one to check the tickets, nor to control the crowds and there was no barricade or ropes,” he told NDTV.
“My point here is that the police are overenthusiastic in trying to prevent any law-and-order situation. Why did they not send Allu Arjun back if they have not given any permission?” he said.
Allu Arjun underwent a marathon 3-4 hour questioning session today. The police have indicated thye might question him again soon.
After a woman ws killed and her son critically injured during the December 4 stampede, Allu Arjun was arrested but he got bail soon after.
Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy has accused Allu Arjun of visiting the theatre without police permission and conducting a ‘roadshow’ even after the stampede. The police said he was not ready to leave even after knowing of the woman’s death.
