New Delhi: While the Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Chennai Super Kings enthralled spectators with a nail-biting contest at Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday night, a high drama of a different sort was unfolding in the stands. A heated altercation between the families of two senior government officials — a senior IPS officer and an income tax commissioner — erupted in the exclusive Diamond Box, reserved for top dignitaries and guests.
What began as a seemingly minor dispute over seating escalated into an intense verbal confrontation.
Families clash over seat
According to reports, the incident occurred when the IPS officer’s daughter, attending the match with her brother, momentarily left her seat to use the washroom, leaving her purse on the chair to indicate it was occupied. In her absence, a man — later identified as a relative of the income tax commissioner — sat in her place. When her brother requested the man to vacate the seat, the latter refused, leading to a heated argument. Matters intensified when both families joined the fray, with the income tax commissioner, her husband, and their son backing the man, while the IPS officer’s daughter returned to support her brother.
“At one point, the confrontation between the IPS officer’s daughter and the man became aggressive, with the man arguing inches from her face,” a senior police official told the Times of India.
Alarmed by the escalating situation, the siblings contacted their parents, who were watching the match on television at home. The IPS officer and his wife rushed to the stadium and attempted to seek help from senior police officials, but reportedly received no immediate assistance. Eventually, the officer’s wife escorted their children out of the venue and lodged a formal complaint at Cubbon Park police station.
‘Unwelcome physical contact’
In her complaint, she alleged that the man had made “unwelcome physical contact” with her daughter and “intruded on her privacy with the intention to offend her”. She further claimed that portions of the altercation had been recorded on her son’s mobile phone and highlighted the absence of police personnel in the Diamond Box during the incident, which took place between 9.40pm and 10.20pm.
Based on the complaint, a case was registered under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Sections 351 (criminal intimidation), 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), 75 (sexual harassment involving unwelcome physical contact), and 79 (insulting the modesty of a woman).
