In a major administrative shake-up late Thursday night, senior IPS officer Seemanth Kumar Singh was appointed as the new Commissioner of Police for Bengaluru, replacing B Dayananda, who was suspended over the tragic stampede outside Chinnaswamy Stadium that claimed 11 lives and injured over 50.
Seemanth Singh, a 1996-batch IPS officer, was serving as Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) with the Bengaluru Metropolitan Task Force. According to a government notification, Singh has been transferred with immediate effect and will now hold dual responsibilities as ADGP and Bengaluru Police Commissioner until further orders.
The high-level reshuffle follows mounting public anger and political pressure. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah responded swiftly, suspending multiple senior officers for negligence, including Cubbon Park Inspector A K Girish, ACP C Balakrishna, Central DCP Shekhar H Tekkannavar, and Additional Commissioner Vikash Kumar Vikash, who was overseeing security at the venue.
Escalating the crackdown, the CM ordered the arrest of officials from RCB, the event organiser DNA Entertainment Pvt Ltd, and KSCA, booking them under serious charges including culpable homicide not amounting to murder. A judicial probe, led by retired Justice Michael D’Cunha, has been initiated with a deadline of 30 days.
Facing criticism from the opposition BJP, which has demanded resignations from both Siddaramaiah and Deputy CM D K Shivakumar, the government has vowed to ensure strict accountability.
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