The Karnataka High Court on Wednesday relaxed a key bail condition imposed on Nikhil Sosale, the Marketing Head of IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), allowing him to travel outside Bengaluru in connection with his work. Sosale is one of the accused in the tragic Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede case that claimed 11 lives in June this year.
Sosale, who was arrested on June 6 and granted bail six days later, had been barred from leaving the city as part of his bail terms. Arguing for modification, his counsel said that Sosale’s professional responsibilities as RCB’s marketing head required frequent travel across India.
A division bench, after reviewing the records, agreed that his role involved regular movement across the country. Taking note of Sosale’s undertaking to inform the investigating officer about all his travel plans, the bench deemed it appropriate to ease the restriction.
“It is expedient to allow the application. The condition is relaxed subject to the petitioner informing the investigating officer before leaving the city and also upon his return,” the court observed in its order.
Senior advocate Sandesh J Chouta, representing Sosale, pointed out that similar travel restrictions had already been lifted for co-accused M/s DNA Entertainment Networks Pvt. Ltd. and the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA).
However, the High Court clarified that Sosale’s passport surrender condition remains unchanged, meaning he cannot travel abroad without prior court permission.
The case stems from the June 4 stampede outside Bengaluru’s M. Chinnaswamy Stadium during RCB’s IPL victory celebration event. Thousands had gathered for the team’s public appearance when chaos broke out, leading to the death of 11 people and injuries to several others.
