Hours after the arrest of actor Allu Arjun in the city of Hyderabad in connection with the death of a woman in a stampede at Sandhya Theater, a letter by the screen authorities has come to the fore raising questions on the Hyderabad Police. The theatre management on 2nd December reportedly had written a letter to the Hyderabad police seeking police deployment for the screening of the recently released movie ‘Pushpa 2’.
#BREAKING
— Nabila Jamal (@nabilajamal_) December 13, 2024
Telangana police failure exposed?
Letter emerges showing Sandhya theatre seeking police bandobast on 4th Dec citing clearly that the movie starcast will be present for the film screening, which could lead to heavy crowding – letter has the stamp & signature of the… https://t.co/wmIqKakmsE pic.twitter.com/QvShG7gqo2
The letter stated that the special screening for the movie was scheduled for 4th December and the star cast including the directors and producers of the movie would be present for the screening. Amid this, the theater management said that a massive fan crowd would gather at the premises. “We request for an arrangement of police bandobast on 4th December and 5th December at Sandhya 70 MM theatre,” the letter read.
Photos of the letter also showed that the letter has been received and stamped by the Hyderabad police.
Notably, the screening of the movie was scheduled on 4th December and the theater management had requested for the police deployment 2 days ago. Despite this actor Allu Arjun’s arrival caused a stampede situation in the theater premises resulting in the death of a woman fan. The deceased was later identified as 39-year-old Revathi who had come for the special screening with her family.
The woman and her son were stuck in the stampede before they fell unconscious. Later they were taken to the hospital where the woman was declared dead. The son meanwhile is undergoing treatment at the hospital.
The actor had earlier promised that he would bear the cost of the child’s treatment and would offer Rs 25 lakhs to the grieving family.
Following this, an FIR was filed against the Sandhya theater and two of the managers of Allu Arun for mismanagement. Earlier, the police had stated that the stampede was caused by the sudden appearance of the actor at the theatre for the premiere on 4th December. Police said that neither Allu Arjun’s team nor the theatre informed police that the actor would be visiting the theatre to attend the premiere of Pushpa 2.
Police also accused the Sandhya Theatre management of not making any arrangements for the actor’s visit, which caused the stampede. There was no separate entry and exit for the actor and his team at the theatre. When Arjun arrived with his security, the crowd tried to enter the theatre with him. At that time, his security allegedly tried to push the people away, which deteriorated the situation and led to a stampede. The theatre’s main gate also collapsed during the incident.
However, the letter by Sandhya management out in public today, seeking police deployment two days prior to the event date raises questions about the state police.
Officials from the Hyderabad Police Commissioner’s Task Force and the Chikkadpally police station arrived at Arjun’s house on Friday morning and took him into custody. Sandhya Theatre’s owner and two employees have already been arrested.
Allu Arjun has been booked under BNS section 105 (punishment for culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 118(1) r/w 3(5) (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt). In an update to the case, Allu Arjun has filed a plea to quash the FIR and requested a stay in the further proceedings. The case will now be heard by the High Court.
Questions on the motive of Hyderabad police
Though the filing of an FIR against the actor after the woman’s death seemed like regular proceedings, the dramatic arrest and the events henceforth have raised some questions for the Hyderabad police.
BJP leader Bandi Sanjay has condemned the arrest of Allu Arjun, stating that preventing the stampede was the job of the law enforcement authorities, and that it is wrong to blame Allu Arjun for the woman’s death.
“National Award-winning actor Allu Arjun, lifted straight from his bedroom without even being given time to change, is a disgraceful act of mismanagement and disrespect. A star of his stature, who brought global recognition to Indian cinema, deserved better treatment. The tragic death of a woman in the stampede at Sandhya theatre is deeply unfortunate, but it only underscores the Congress government’s failure to manage the massive crowd“, Bandi Sanjay posted on X.
National Award-winning actor Allu Arjun, lifted straight from his bedroom without even being given time to change, is a disgraceful act of mismanagement and disrespect.
— Bandi Sanjay Kumar (@bandisanjay_bjp) December 13, 2024
A star of his stature, who brought global recognition to Indian cinema, deserved better treatment.
The tragic…
BRS leader KTR has also condemned the arrest and has posted that the stampede and the woman’s death cannot be blamed on the actor.
“Arrest of National Award-winning star Allu Arjun is the pinnacle of insecurity of the rulers! I totally sympathize with the victims of the stampede but who failed really? Treating Allu Arjun Garu as a common criminal is uncalled for especially for something he isn’t directly responsible”, KTR posted.
Arrest of National Award winning star Allu Arjun is the pinnacle of insecurity of the rulers!
— KTR (@KTRBRS) December 13, 2024
I totally sympathize with the victims of the stampede but who failed really?
Treating @alluarjun Garu as a common criminal is uncalled for especially for something he isn’t directly… pic.twitter.com/S1da96atYa
The recent news that the Sandhya theatre had already informed the police about the arrival of Pushpa 2 stars and makers at the theatre and requested police arrangements to manage the crowd, has indeed raised questions on the conduct of the authorities and the sudden arerst of the actor.
