Telugu film actor Allu Arjun has been arrested for the death of a woman – due to asphyxiation during a benefit event for a recently released film. Flower 2: Rules – Highlights the need to formulate rules to manage mega-events involving huge crowds. Although the scenario of the woman’s death and the near-death of her nine-year-old son is unfortunate, the tragedy calls for an absolute analysis to discover its causes.
Three entities emerge – Sandhya Theater which organizes the show, the police responsible for law and order and Allu Arjun who pulls the crowd.
in Sushil Ansal vs. Central Bureau of Investigation After the Upar cinema fire, the Supreme Court referred to Section 12 of the Cinematograph Act, 1952, which regulates the exhibition of films, and talked about the responsibility of theaters to take adequate precautions for the safety of those attending the exhibition there. Therefore, Sandhya Theater was responsible for making necessary arrangements for crowd management as an accident occurred inside the theater instead of washing their hands of their work by informing the police department about the performance.
However, the entire responsibility of maintaining peace and security rests on the shoulders of the police. As there were three benefit shows in close proximity, the police had to make a proper assessment of the law and order. If the crowd was larger than expected, they should call in reinforcements. If there had been a stampede in the area where there were about 3,000 people, there could have been many more casualties. That, thankfully, did not arise.
According to government officials, Arjun caused a crisis by waving to the crowd while entering the theatre. It is an acceptable practice for actors to greet their fans and he too followed that tradition without realizing the seriousness of the situation. Still, artists should also behave responsibly rather than spreading mass hysteria with their actions.
Since it is difficult to assign responsibility to anyone, it is high time the state government frames clear guidelines for organizers of major events for crowd management and safety of participants.