Sandhya Gets Cancellation Notice for December 4 Stampede
Hyderabad: Hyderabad police commissioner C.V. Anand on Tuesday said that a notice was issued to Sandhya 70 mm theatre to explain why its cinema license should not be cancelled because of its management’s negligence during the Pushpa-2 premiere show on December 4, which led to the death of a 37-year-old woman.
The notice gave 10 days of time to the theatre management to respond.
The commissioner said two theatres — Sandhya 70 mm and Sandhya 35 mm — are located at the same place, with a seating capacity of about 2,520 and it was observed during the investigation that there was no special entry for women to enter the theatre.
According to an investigation report submitted to the Hyderabad police commissioner by the investigation officer, a copy of which is with Deccan Chronicle, the Sandhya management was encouraging more audience to come to the theatre and has not taken any steps to control the crowd.
Anand said the police personnel were controlling the crowd and did their best to save several lives during the stampede. Later the commissioner met the medical team at KIMS and inquired about the health condition of the victim’s son Sri Tej.
On December 4, the Pushpa-2 premiere show was released in four theatres — Sandhya 70 mm and Sandhya 35 mm, Sudarshan 35 mm and Devi 70 mm — that fall in close vicinity. The area also had several restaurants, making it the busiest area in the central zone of Hyderabad.
There was only one entry and exit for two Sandhya theatres with a combined seating capacity of 2,520 and there was an additional crowd of 2,500 on the night of December 4.
According to a police officer, the situation turned worse after actor Allu Arjun reached the Sandhya theatre waving to the crowd from his car’s sunroof, and while trying to enter the theatre, his personal security pushed the crowd from both the sides.
“The police have collected the footage from CCTV cameras which showed Allu Arun provoking the crowd by making gestures asking them to come towards him — a strong evidence to prove legally as to who instigated the mob that led in a stampede. This also proves why there was a stampede at Sandhya theatre and not at Sudarshan and Devi theatres which also released premier shows. We will submit the footage to the court to explain the real reason for the stampede,” he explained.
Allu Arjun is an educated and sensible man, who has been to the Sandhya theatre several times. He is quite familiar with the topography of the theatre and the narrow roads and restaurants and other establishments around the theatre. He was pretty much aware of the consequences of a stampede but he ignored caution for his publicity, the official said.
“Apart from the traffic and law and order police, we deployed an additional six platoons on December 4. There was no untoward incident reported during the release of Pushpa-2 at Devi or Sudharshan theatre. The stampede happened only while Allu Arjun was trying to get inside the theatre with his personal security. We are probing the case and mentioned the same in the High Court,” the officer said.
Similarly, the theatre management is also equally responsible for the stampede because they went ahead with the actor’s presence in spite of the police refusing the permission, said another police officer.
He said the theatre management also encouraged Allu Arjun’s fans to gather in huge numbers by erecting large flexes outside the theatre illegally without prior permission. It allowed the movie makers to install the truss and lighting at the theatre premises which caused a large gathering of the public.
The investigating report also said that the theatre’s infrastructure was not satisfactory and the entry grill gate for the lower balcony was not manned property to withstand the public flow. It got damaged due to overcrowding. The theatre also did not plan any entry, exit and seating plan for the film’s lead actors despite knowing that they will attract huge public attention.
The report also said that the theatre management allowed Allu Arjun’s private security to enter the theatre along with him, which caused inconvenience to the public and the security personnel blocked the free passage between the seats which was meant for the movement of public.
The report said that there was no proper system to check the tickets which allowed unauthorised entry and overcrowding inside the theatre which created suffocation inside the theatre.
