BENGALURU: What was meant to be a day of jubilation turned into a tragedy on Wednesday as a stampede outside Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium claimed at least seven lives and left over 30 others injured.

The incident occurred in the afternoon, as thousands of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) fans swarmed the stadium to take part in celebrations marking the team’s historic first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) title win. Despite heavy police deployment, the sheer volume of the crowd quickly overwhelmed the security arrangements. Witnesses described chaotic scenes as fans rushed in from multiple gates, eager to catch a glimpse of their cricketing heroes. In the crush that followed, several people collapsed and were trampled. Ambulance services were hampered by the massive crowd on surrounding roads, delaying emergency response. Despite the mounting injuries, large crowds remained gathered both outside the stadium and near Vidhana Soudha, where a government-organised felicitation ceremony for the team was also planned. Earlier in the day, the Karnataka government had cancelled a proposed victory parade from Vidhana Soudha to the stadium, citing crowd control and safety concerns.