The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is set to convene its 28th Apex Council meeting on June 14. The spotlight will be firmly on the tragic stampede that took place during Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025) victory celebration earlier this month.
The stampede occurred outside the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on June 4. Around 2 lakh fans had gathered for a victory parade after RCB clinched their maiden IPL title. The incident left 11 people dead.
It was a total chaos with no official ticketing or capacity regulation in place, and fans flooding the streets hours before the event. FIRs have since been filed against multiple parties, including RCB, the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), and DNA Entertainment Networks, an event management company. RCB marketing head Nikhil Sosale was also taken into custody along with three DNA staff members.
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Strict Guidelines Likely for Victory Parades
With public sentiment demanding answers and accountability, the BCCI has included the issue at the top of its upcoming Apex Council meeting agenda.
There will be discussions around framing Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for IPL victory parades and other franchise-level public events. The board is expected to lay out clear requirements that franchises and local authorities must meet before conducting any large-scale celebrations.
This comes after it emerged that the RCB parade lacked proper communication, planning and safety mechanisms, despite the expectation of a massive turnout following the team’s emotional maiden title win. According to local police estimates, more than 2 lakh people gathered near the stadium that evening. There was no open bus celebration, but the tragedy had already struck.
The BCCI was reportedly kept out of the loop during the planning of the event. The board now wants to ensure that any franchise-led celebration in future must be routed through official protocols.
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Other Important Matters on Agenda
Among the other important topics is the finalisation of venues for India’s upcoming home series against New Zealand, which is scheduled for the early part of 2026.
A discussion will take place on the 2025–26 domestic season calendar, including fixture planning for tournaments like the Ranji Trophy, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Vijay Hazare Trophy, and other age-group competitions.
The council will also respond to a directive from the BCCI Ombudsman regarding a complaint filed by V. Agam Rao, who raised concerns over alleged discrepancies in how infrastructure development funds were allocated and used in Telangana. The board is expected to review the matter and decide on the next course of action.
The Apex Council will consider revisions to the Code of Conduct for players and team officials. There will be a discussion on the tournament allowance policy for BCCI employees.
Also up for review are the proposed amendments to the Age Verification Programme (AVP).
Also read: Chinnaswamy Stampede: Karnataka blames BCCI, RCB in court for Bengaluru stampede
