Hyderabad: Telugu superstar Allu Arjun has been arrested in connection with the stampede outside a Hyderabad theatre last week in which one woman was killed. The stampede broke after the hugely popular actor made an unscheduled appearance at the theatre showing his new film ‘Pusha 2: The Rule’.
Hyderabad Police had earlier filed a case against the 41-year-old star and several others, including members of his security team and the management of the Sandhya Theatre in the city.
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Wednesday 15 Jan. 2025
A 35-year-old woman was killed and her nine-year-old son was injured in the stampede that erupted as the massive crowd jostled and shoved each other to catch a glimpse of Allu Arjun on his unannounced arrival; Allu Arjun and the film’s music director, Devi Sri Prasad, arrived unexpectedly.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner CV Anand had said then, “There was no intimation from the side of theatre management or actors’ team… that they will be visiting the theatre…” and noted also that no separate entry, or exit, had been provided, even though the theatre knew they were coming.”
According to the police, Arjun arrived at the theatre at 9.30 pm. As news of his arrival — he used the main entrance and spent 15-20 minutes outside — spread, hundreds of people thronged to catch a glimpse of him. His security team started pushing the crowd back and that aggravated the situation.
The woman, identified as Revathi, and her son felt “suffocated”, the police said. They were pulled out of the crowd by police who performed emergency first aid and shifted them to a nearby hospital. Arjun, by this time, had gone into the theatre, but the crowd had continued building in the lobby.
Responding to the stampede and the woman’s death, Arjun later said on X, “Deeply heartbroken by the tragic incident… My heartfelt condolences go out to the grieving family during this unimaginably difficult time. I want to assure them they are not alone in this pain and will meet the family personally.”
Arjun also announced assistance of Rs 25 lakh for the woman’s family, and also promised to take care of the medical expenses of the boy, whose condition was critical.
