The Hyderabad Police have filed a chargesheet in the ‘Pushpa 2’ movie stampede case naming 23 individuals, including Telugu film star Allu Arjun. While the owners of the Sandhya Cinema were named as prime accused, the actor was named as accused number 11 in the chargesheet.
Last year, the stampede on the night of the release of Pushpa 2 led to the death of a woman and left her young son critically injured.
According to Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar, the investigation into the Sandhya 70mm Theatre stampede case was completed and a detailed chargesheet was filed before the court on 24 December. During investigations, the police found serious lapses in planning, crowd management, security arrangements on the part of the theatre management, private security personnel, and the event managers who failed to coordinate among themselves.
The police used the testimonies of eye-witnesses and CCTV footage during investigations. A total of 23 people were named in the case. Among them, 14 had been arrested, including Allu Arjun, while nine others obtained anticipatory bail and were served notices.
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Apart from Allu Arjun, his personal staff, like managers, security guards, and the five bouncers, were also named in the chargesheet. The partners of the Sandhya Theatre, the manager, the gatekeeper of the lower balcony, the event manager, and the in-charge of the Allu Arjun Fan Association were all named in the chargesheet.
The stampede occurred on the night of 4 December last year, during the special screening of Pushpa 2 at Sandhya Theatre. With Allu Arjun reaching the venue in an open vehicle, the fans went berserk, surging inside the theatre to catch a glimpse of their favourite star. A 39-year-old woman, Revathi, who was accompanying her nine-year-old son Sritej, died despite the attempt by police to resuscitate her. Sritej was critically injured. Later, the actor was arrested by police on 13 December and spent a night in jail before getting an interim bail from the court.