Four college students were arrested on Sunday under non-bailable sections for invading the pitch during the India-Sri Lanka Test in Bangalore, an act that in more innocent pre-Covid times would have been deemed a youthful caper meriting only a warning.
A court on Monday evening remanded two of the students to 14 days’ judicial custody while granting bail to the other two, who were minors. A senior lawyer and cricket fan rued the police's “harsh” action.
The students had scaled the fence at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium and run onto the ground to take selfies with Indian star Virat Kohli on Sunday, the second day of the day/night Test.
While Kohli obliged readily, the students’ act was deemed “dangerous to the players’ health”. Players and coaching staff from both sides have been living in a mandatory bio-bubble to protect themselves from Covid.
Video clips on social media show four young men without face masks running onto the ground during a medical break around 9.20pm on Sunday. Sri Lankan batter Kusal Mendis was receiving treatment at the time after being hit by a Mohammed Shami delivery.
Two of the students got close to Kohli, who had been fielding in the slips, and took a selfie with him. Policemen and stadium security staff rushed to the ground and nabbed three of the young men after some jostling. The fourth was caught after a chase that was cheered lustily by 22,800 spectators.
Officers said the boys were taken to Cubbon Park police station on Sunday and questioned about their intent.
They have been booked under penal code sections 447 (criminal trespass), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infectious disease dangerous to life) and 271 (disobedience of quarantine rule), and provisions of the Epidemic Diseases Act. Several of the provisions are non-bailable, that is, the accused can secure bail only from a court and not from the police station.
If convicted, the two adults among the students could face prison terms of up to six months and the two minors could face a spell at a juvenile home.
The police did not reveal the students’ names. They said two of them are from Bangalore and two from Gulbarga in northern Karnataka.
Indian vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah played the incident down while talking to reporters after stumps on Sunday. “We don’t know what to say about that. The craze for the game is very high and the fans get emotional sometimes,” he said.
Karnataka State Cricket Association spokesperson Vinay Mruthyunjaya described the arrests as a police decision.
“We have handed over the stadium to the police and it is their decision to book the case,” he told The Telegraph on Monday.
Reminded that pitch invaders were traditionally let off with a warning, Mruthyunjaya said: “Such acts could be dangerous to the players’ health since we are still governed by Covid safety regulations.”
Senior lawyer G.R. Mohan, a cricket fan, said the police action was “too harsh and sets a bad precedent”. “They are just kids and cricket lovers,” he told this newspaper. “I wonder why little or no action is taken against politicians who hold large gatherings. At best, some cases are booked and then forgotten.”
There was a pitch invasion also during the first Test in Mohali earlier this month, but it could not be confirmed whether any action was taken against the lone perpetrator.
Karnataka lifted almost all Covid restrictions on March 3 and allowed large public gatherings. But protocols such as physical distancing, especially in closed spaces, hand-sanitising and mask-wearing are to continue until further notice.