The victim, aged 35, died and his 8-year-old son was seriously injured during the stampede which occurred during the screening of the film Pushpa: The Rule – Part 2 on December 4 in Hyderabad, southern Telangana state.
Allu Arjun was arrested after the victim’s husband filed a complaint against him, his security team and the theater management for not informing the police of the actor’s plan to attend the screening, leading to led to a larger crowd than expected. Authorities charged the actor, his security team and theater management staff with manslaughter.
Police have already arrested the owner of the cinema and two of his employees.
A local court on Friday ordered the actor to spend 14 days in jail, but the Telangana High Court granted him bail within hours. The Indian star, however, had to spend the night in jail because prison authorities did not receive a copy of the bail bond until Friday evening, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.
The actor has not commented on the accusations against him or his arrest. Arjun, however, wrote on the social network X that he was “heartbroken by this tragic event”. He later announced $29,000 in financial assistance for the family of the woman who died and promised to cover the medical expenses of his injured son.
Deadly crowd movements are relatively common in India, where large crowds gather in small areas with poor infrastructure and few security measures.
