CAT Reverses Suspension of IPS Officer Vikash Kumar Vikash

Bengaluru, Jul 1 (PTI) The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has nullified the Karnataka government's suspension of senior IPS officer Vikash Kumar Vikash. The officer was suspended following a tragic stampede that occurred in front of M Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 4, resulting in 11 fatalities and severe criticism of the event's planning and crowd management.

Challenging the suspension order issued on June 5, Vikash took the matter to the tribunal. The suspension list also included names of then Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda and DCP Shekar H Tekkannavar. The tribunal's Bengaluru bench, comprising Justice B K Shrivastava and administrative member Santhosh Mehra, reserved its decision on June 24 and overturned Vikash's suspension on the following Tuesday.

Senior advocate Dhyan Chinappa, representing Vikash, stated, “The tribunal has allowed the petition and annulled the suspension, affirming that he is entitled to all benefits as per service rules.” The CAT emphasized that its decision could potentially influence the cases of Dayananda and Tekkannavar, offering scope for their reinstatement.

After the stampede, the Chief Minister announced the suspension of the Bengaluru city Commissioner of Police Dayananda, Additional Commissioner of Police Vikash Kumar Vikash—responsible for the event at the stadium—as well as the Deputy Commissioner of Police of the central division, Shekhar H Tekkannavar. Assistant Commissioner of Police C Balakrishna and Circle Police Inspector of Cubbon Park Police station A K Girish were also suspended. The suspensions were enforced under the All India Services (Discipline & Appeal) Rules, 1969, while action against the ACP and PI was taken under the Karnataka State Police (Disciplinary Proceedings) Rules, 1965.

The suspension order highlighted that the CEO of RCB informed the Bengaluru City Police Commissioner about the planned victory parade and celebrations on June 3, but the office failed to issue a written reply denying permission due to inadequate preparation time for such a large event.

It further noted that RCB and the Cricket Association announced the celebrations on social media, inviting fans to the stadium without following the usual ticket or pass distribution procedure. Despite expecting a large turnout of cricket fans, the necessary steps to organize the event adequately, warn the public, or deploy additional police for crowd management were not taken. Furthermore, there was no consultation with higher authorities for guidance. This oversight led to chaos, resulting in the tragic loss of lives and significant embarrassment for the government.