Bengaluru stampede: Leg under barricade, hand caught in rod… witnesses recount tragedy | Bengaluru News

BENGALURU: A leg stuck in the narrow bars of an iron barricade, a woman realising milling crowds had trampled all over her body, including abdomen and private parts, two days after she regained consciousness, and a hand inextricably caught in a fencing rod.Shocking tales of insensitive crowd behaviour and lack of crowd-management measures filled the corridors of Bengaluru Urban deputy commissioner’s office on Wednesday as a dozen victims and families — hands in bandages, neck braces, and limps — recounted the almost-apocalyptic horror, while giving witness accounts during a magisterial inquiry into the June 4 cricket stadium stampede that left 11 dead and 75 injured.It was as if humanity had walked away from the crowd, as a witness said. “There is no humanity in a crowd, people just look out for themselves,” recalled Monish Gowda, 25, who was caught under a barricade at Gate 18. “Not too long before I was stuck, I was at Gate 21 around 6.30 pm. My dad called to warn me about the chaos. I noticed people falling down, one over the other at Gate 21. I helped someone to safety and then went towards another gate. The team bus left a few minutes before,” he recalled.Then Gowda shifted to gate 18. In the jostle, his leg got stuck in a barricade. In milliseconds, at least 12 people fell over it, leaving him writhing with a muscle injury. “I screamed in pain, but people did not bother even for a minute. The only thing on their minds was how to go ahead (and escape the chaotic crowd). A group of three persons tried to lift the barricade, but there were too many people piled on top of it. Over time, I got help. Police were also helpless. Someone from the media put me in an ambulance, and I was rescued,” he recalled.Syed Abu Jaffer, 22, who fell at Gate 20, echoed the lapse of humanity in a crowd. “Someone stepped on my neck,” recalled the fan with a brace around his neck. His recovery will take at least a week more. “People should have some civic sense. Imagine people throwing shoes into the stadium to make the staff open the gates!”“The gates opened and closed a few times, and when it opened one last time, people began to rush in. Someone from behind pushed me. I fell down, hand caught in the fencing rod. I did not lose consciousness. I saw the chaos — people being carried to safety. There were very few police personnel. I started walking to a hospital nearby,” said 26-year-old Rajesh MG. He was asked to take bedrest for three days for his muscle injury. And no talk of compensation.Rahul came in with a neck brace, with Shamili, 25, and Annie, 17. “We were at Gate 6 and reached the stadium at 4 pm,” recalled Annie. “We waited for long. When the gate was opened, people rushed in, and all three of us fell, and people started to step on us. Lathicharge started, I waved my hand. Police pulled me to safety. I was there for two hours before my brother came to pick me up,” she said, recovering from a neck, back, and knee injury. She also developed a line inside her mouth.“We were admitted to Bowring Hospital but were uncomfortable at the hospital and asked to be discharged the next day,” she said.Shamili lost consciousness after falling down. “When I regained consciousness in the hospital (Bowring), I realised there were injuries on my abdomen and vagina. I had marks of people stepping on me all over. Two days after the incident when the adrenaline rush wore off, I realised I had injuries,” she said in a written statement.Veerababu, a cousin of Kamakshi who died in the stampede, said, “My cousin was one of the 11 victims of the stampede. I’m her guardian in Bengaluru and was called to identify her body.” The family received a cheque of Rs 25 lakh. “No compensation is compensation for the loss of life. Her family is still in deep shock,” said another relative of Kamakshi.