Actor Allu Arjun has been arrested by the Hyderabad police over the Sandhya theatre stampede incident in which a woman named Revathi died, during a premiere show of his new film Pushpa 2- The Rule. As police officers waited at his residence to take him into custody, Allu Arjun was seen telling one of them, “There’s nothing wrong with taking me (into custody), but doing it from right outside the bedroom is too much.”
Police officers were seen taking Allu Arjun from inside his residence to the parking space. A staff member then brought him coffee and the police officers waited for the actor to drink it. He was seen consoling his wife Allu Sneha Reddy. His father Allu Aravind, brother Allu Sirish and others were also present.
A police officer was also heard saying that Allu Aravind should be allowed to accompany his son, asking him to sit in front of the police vehicle. Allu Aravind was then seen exiting the police vehicle, as the police officers said it may look misleading, and that the media may misreport (as Allu Aravind also being arrested). “Let any credit be solely mine, good or bad,” Allu Arjun was heard quipping.
The stampede at Sandhya 70 mm theatre on the night of December 4 was triggered by Allu Arjun's sudden visit for a premier show of his film Pushpa 2: The Rule. Revathi, a resident of Dilshuknagar, died in the stampede, when the crowd thronged to catch a glimpse of the actor, who was accompanied by his personal security team. Police blamed the actor’s team for worsening the stampede. “His personal security team started pushing the public which further aggravated the situation as there was already a huge gathering at the theatre,” Hyderabad Central Zone Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Akshansh Yadav had stated earlier on December 5.
Allu Arjun, his security team and the management of Sandhya theatre were booked under Sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 108 (voluntarily causing hurt) read with Section 3 clause 5 (acts done by several in furtherance of common intention) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
While it’s a common practice for Telugu movie stars to visit certain theatres at RTC X roads for their movie premieres, the Chikkadpally police alleged that neither the theatre management nor the actor’s team had informed authorities about his visit on December 4.
A day after the incident, Allu Arjun released a video offering condolences to Revathi’s family, and announced Rs 25 lakh as compensation. While he also urged fans to be careful and called the incident deeply saddening, the actor was criticised for failing to apologise for the stampede.
The police have already arrested three persons in connection with the incident -- M Sandeep, a partner of Sandhya theatre, M Nagaraju, the theatre's manager, and Sri Gandhakam Vijay Chander, the lower balcony in-charge.
Allu Arjun had filed a petition in the Telangana High Court on December 11, seeking to quash the FIR against him.