The December 4 premiere of the highly-awaited pan-Indian project ‘Pushpa 2’ turned fatal for a fan in Hyderabad. A 35-year-old woman, Revathi, died in a stampede incident while her eight-year-old son Sritej required hospitalisation. Now, the Chikkadpally police arrested three management members of Sandhya Theatre in connection to the incident.

As per a Siasat report, the police took M Sandeep the owner of Sandhya theatre, M Nagaraju, the manager and Gandhakam Vijay Chander, the security manager, into custody. Moreover, they booked a case under section 105,118(1) read with 3(5) of BNS.

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For the unversed, on December 4, a premiere of ‘Pushpa 2’ was organised at the theatre in RTC X Roads. Allu Arjun attended the premiere with co-star Rashmika Mandanna and his wife, Allu Sneha Reddy. The police told PTI that neither the theatre management nor the actors informed them about the visiting plans. Moreover, despite being aware of his arrival, the theatre management didn’t make any additional security provisions to manage the crowd. Additionally, they did not arrange separate entry or exit points for the actor’s team.

Arjun’s visit resulted in a stampede situation at the theatre, with fans running to catch a glimpse of the star. This led to the death of 35-year-old Revathi. She and her young son fell unconscious during the incident and she was announced dead while her son was hospitalised in critical condition. The police also performed CPR on both victims before rushing them to the hospital.

“Around 9:30 p.m., the actor arrived at the theatre with his personal security team and the people gathered there entered the lower balcony area along with him. His personal security team started pushing the public, which further aggravated the situation,” Chikkadpally ACP L. Ramesh Kumar explained.

Also Read: ‘Pushpa 2’ premiere stampede: Woman dies, son injured in Hyderabad

Following the incident, Allu Arjun offered 25 lakhs compensation to the family and assured them that he would pay the child’s medical bills. At a press event in Hyderabad on Saturday, he apologised to the family. The actor said, “The money I’ve given is only a gesture to show we’re there for them. I don’t want to disturb them; I’m giving them their space. I will never be able to help with their loss, but I will meet them once they recover. I’ll help them in whatever way I can.”