The report tabled by the Karnataka government in the High Court on the Bengaluru stampede has been the burning topic over the last 24 hours. It implicates Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and has placed the blame on the franchise and its partners. While it is only natural and expected that RCB will now respond to the report and contest the findings, the truth is that all this will never really redeem either the administration or the franchise. Each stakeholder is responsible for the tragedy, and the failure was collective. While television debates can suggest otherwise, the ground reality will never change. And in all this, you will never really find those fans again. They are dead and no one really cares.
Juventus honour the victims of the Heysel Stadium disaster (1985) in the Walk of Fame outside their stadium. The Hillsborough Memorial is central to Anfield, where Liverpool also remember the 97 victims of the fatal crush with the number embroidered on the back of every shirt. Kenny Dalglish, then manager, attended almost every funeral, and eventually resigned from the job because of the emotional took it took on him. How many celebs farewelled the Bengaluru victims?
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Now that a month and a half has passed, do we even remember the names of a single fan that died? Do we even know how the families are coping with what happened? Do we know how lives have changed for them forever? While we are indeed bothered about high-profile arrests and suspensions, these are not the ones who will ever suffer. The fans have suffered and will continue to do so. No report can alleviate the pain or even try and understand it.
As a parent will I, ever, allow my daughter to go and be a part of a celebration like this? Will any parent of sound mind allow it? The answer is no. Fandom has been scarred, and that’s the terminal damage. The sport has been tarnished and the hurt is irreparable. Even we, the media, have moved on. We are happy reporting on the England series, for that’s what gets us eyeballs. Why should anyone bother about an ordinary family who don’t make headlines? The news only comes up in our feed when a report is tabled. That’s when we all wake up and debate the issue for 24 hours. And come tomorrow, we would move on again and focus on the next story. The victims are stories. Footnotes or numbers that will forever be part of probe reports. No empathy, no understanding, just a mere number that documents a dark tragedy.
Having read the 331-page report, I can’t but help feel angry. Frustrated and violated. We as ordinary fans did not deserve any of this. And yet, the misery was piled on us by total administrative apathy. Whether it was RCB or the police or the administration, or all combined, is for the judiciary to adjudicate on. For us, we needed the very basics offered to us as fans to be a part of the parade. And the truth is that every fan was invited to attend. And then treated with disdain.
None of the celebrities in question have lost anything tangible. No one will have their lives changed forever. The case, after a year or so, will be done and dusted. Things will move on. Only the reports will remain as a grim reminder of what really happened. And the families of the 11 who lost their lives will always be reminded of their loss each time RCB play, or the IPL comes round. Yes, the brand is tarnished, and tarnished forever.
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