Kochi: Kochi City Police Commissioner A Akbar on Sunday asserted the Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) did not inform the police or seek permission regarding the musical concert organised in connection with the Tech Fest.
Talking to the media on the stampede on the CUSAT campus, DCP K Sudarshan said that police never enter any campus without seeking permission from the institution.
“We have not received any official requisition seeking help to manage the crowd during the musical concert. College authorities normally contact the police if they need our help during such programmes. But, CUSAT authority has not approached police raising such a demand,” said Akbar.
DCP Sudarsan added that such programmes are very common on the campus and CUSAT officials have not filed any application seeking police force for the event.
Earlier, CUSAT Vice-Chancellor P G Sankaran told the media that the university officials had informed the police about the programme, but there was no written communication. It is learnt that six policemen were present on the campus during the programme. “People waiting outside the gate rushed to the auditorium when music started playing ahead of Nikhita Gandhi's performance. Amid the mayhem, students who were standing on the steps fell headlong. Those rushing in stomped over them,” the vice-chancellor said.
At the same time, State Law and Industries Minister P Rajeeve said police had issued an advisory to all auditoriums in Ernakulam about crowd control, but educational institutions were not included in the same.
“Following the Kalamassery blasts, the government has issued strict guidelines to the auditoriums. If more people attend an event exceeding the capacity of the auditorium, the owner must inform the police. However, these guidelines do not apply to educational institutions. In CUSAT, usually, students organise events and manage everything including crowd rush,” he said.
Talking about the criticism that lack of proper management and failure to seek police help caused the tragedy, the minister said reports from the probe teams would reveal the truth.
