The Telangana Police on Sunday alleged that Telugu film actor Allu Arjun refused to leave Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre during the premiere of his film Pushpa 2 even after he was told that a woman had died in a stampede outside, The Indian Express reported.
The 39-year-old woman died and her nine-year-old son was injured in the stampede that took place on December 4 when Arjun visited the theatre for the premiere of his film.
On Saturday, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy alleged that Arjun came to the theatre even though the police had denied permission for his visit. The actor, however, denied the allegation and described it as an attempt at character assassination.
Arjun also claimed that he left Sandhya Theatre as soon as he came to know “about the problem outside”, The Indian Express quoted him as saying.
The actor was briefly arrested on December 13 in connection with the case, but was granted interim bail for four weeks on the same day.
At a press conference on Sunday, the police said that the actor ignored their requests to leave the premises of the theatre on December 4. Video footage with timestamps indicating that Arjun remained in the theatre until nearly midnight on that day was also released by the police, according to The Indian Express.
The newspaper quoted Assistant Commissioner of Police Ramesh Kumar as saying that the manager of the theatre initially refused to allow the police to go near Arjun during the premiere and insisted on conveying their message to the actor himself.
Arjun did not leave despite this, Kumar said. The police subsequently went to the actor’s manager and told him about the death of the woman in the stampede, he added. However, officers were still not allowed to meet Arjun, Kumar alleged.
Police officers finally forced their way inside and asked the actor to leave as the situation turned more chaotic around midnight, according to Kumar.
“When we finally managed to go near Arjun and informed him about the woman’s death and the condition of the boy, as well as the chaos outside, he still refused to leave, saying he would go after watching the movie,” The Indian Express quoted Kumar as saying.
“The actor did not heed police requests to leave so that the situation could be controlled,” Kumar said. “Doesn’t this video footage make it clear what transpired? Police officers, even seniors, faced several challenges to approach the actor and get him to leave.”
He added: “We are taking legal advice on how to take this case forward.”
On Sunday, a group of persons stormed Arjun’s home in Hyderabad and damaged property. Arjun was not present at his home at the time.
Those who barged into the actor’s home claimed to be members of the Osmania University’s Joint Action Committee. They shouted slogans and demanded Rs 1 crore compensation for the family of a woman who died in the stampede.
Eight persons were arrested in connection with the incident.
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