Allu Arjun told about stampede death, didn’t leave: Cops | India News

HYDERABAD: A day after Telangana CM A Revanth Reddy launched a scathing attack on Allu Arjun over the Dec 4 stampede at the premiere of his film, ‘Pushpa 2: The Rule‘, Hyderabad police alleged Sunday that the actor insisted on sitting through the show even after being told that a woman had died in the crush outside.
The stampede at Sandhya Theatre left 39-year-old Revathi dead and her minor son severely injured. Arrested and granted bail, the actor claimed at a presser Saturday that no cop had asked him to leave the theatre. He called it “character assassination by spreading misinformation”.

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Despite being briefed about the situation outside, the actor refused to leave the theatre. He was adamant on watching the entire film. We not only told him about the fatality but also assured to clear the road outside for him to leave as he is a celebrity. Even then he refused to leave. It was only after the DCP stormed inside and gave him a deadline of 15 minutes to clear out, did he budge from there,” ACP L Ramesh Kumar said Sunday at a presser with colleagues.
Telangana DGP in-charge Jitender emphasised that public safety supersedes film promotion. “With regard to Allu Arjun, we have nothing against any individual. At the same time everyone should be responsible towards the state. They should understand that safety and security of citizens is of utmost importance. They are heroes in films but on ground they should understand the problems of society. Promotion of films is not as important as the safety of citizens.” Jitender said.
City police chief CV Anand released a 6.5-minute video to chronicle sequence of events that unfolded on Dec 4, with some visuals purportedly showing the actor being escorted out of theatre by cops.
B Raju Naik, SHO of Chikkadpally area in which the theatre falls, also addressed the presser, echoing his senior colleagues and asserting that the crowd was “out of control”. “I somehow managed to escape death. But for the past 15 days, the fact that one woman (Revathi) died in my hands, and that we could not save her, has been haunting me. I pray for the soul and speedy recovery of her child,” Naik said, fighting back tears.
As Revanth defended cops, some of the CM’s Congress colleagues insinuated Sunday that Allu had lacked empathy for the stampede victims and urged him to behave like “a real hero, not a reel hero”.“How can he prioritise box office collections over public safety? The actor should be a role model both on and off the screen,” said Congress MP Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy. Congress MLC Balmoori Venkat questioned Allu’s statements that he and the film brought pride to Telugu people. However, CM Revanth’s rivals slammed his criticism of Allu in the assembly Saturday. Junior Union home minister Bandi Sanjay accused the Congress govt of collaborating with AIMIM to target Tollywood as part of a “calculated conspiracy”.
Sanjay pointed out that Allu had informed the cops beforehand and blamed the govt for the chaos. “An AIMIM member was prompted to raise a scripted question in the assembly, weaving a narrative like a movie plot to reignite this issue. This is shameful,” Sanjay said in a statement, referring to AIMIM’s MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi and his tirade against Allu.