What Caused The Pushpa 2 Stampede? Hyderabad Police Blame Allu Arjun's Action

Allu Arjun, who was arrested in connection with the tragic death of a woman during a stampede at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre, has been granted bail.

Allu Arjun, who was arrested in connection with the tragic death of a woman during a stampede at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre on December 4, following the premiere of ‘Pushpa 2’, has been granted bail. The actor had applied for interim bail, which was approved by the Telangana High Court. However, due to delays in processing the paperwork, he spent a night in jail. Arjun has now been released, offering him some relief while investigations into the incident are ongoing.

Pushpa 2 star Allu Arjun granted bail

Meanwhile, on Friday, the Hyderabad police issued a clarification addressing claims of misbehavior towards the actor. In an official press release, the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central Zone, Hyderabad City, stated:

“Clarification regarding the letter being circulating in media addressed by Sandhya Cine Enterprise 70 MM to ACP Chikkadpally requesting bandobust on 04/05-12-2024 in connection with release of Pushpa-2. We receive a lot of requests for bandobast citing visits by some political personalities, film celebrities, religious programs etc., However, it is beyond our resources to provide bandobast for every event".

The police clarified that when a large crowd is anticipated or a celebrity is scheduled to attend an event, the organisers typically meet with the police to coordinate and discuss the event details.

“In specific cases where a heavy crowd is expected or some popular personality is visiting, the organizer personally visits the police station / ACP / DCP office and briefs about the program depending upon which we provide the bandobust. In this case, the organizer did not meet any officer and simply submitted the letter in the inward section. No details were made available to the police despite this we arranged suitable bandobust for crowd management outside the theatre. The crowd was well in control till the actor arrived," police said.

What happened at Sandhya Theatre?

The police stated that the actor's gesture of waving to fans triggered the chaos at Sandhya Theatre, which ultimately led to the stampede and the tragic death of a woman.

“He came to the theatre, came out from the sunroof of his vehicle and started waving to the public gathered there. This gesture attracted a lot of the public towards the theatre’s main gate. At the same time, his private security started pushing people to make way for his vehicle. His team was intimated to take him back citing a large public gathering but they didn’t act on it and Allu Arjun was there inside the theatre for more than two hours. Therefore, it is clear that adequate police bandobast was in place, it was his actions which led to this unfortunate incident, in which a lady died and her son is still unconscious on a ventilator even after 9 days of the incident," they said.

Allu Arjun then went back to his home in Jubilee Hills, where he had an emotional reunion with his wife, Sneha Reddy, who broke down when she saw him.