Telugu actor Allu Arjun walked out of jail on Saturday morning, a day after he was arrested in connection with the stampede outside a Hyderabad theatre screening ‘Pushpa 2’ earlier this month in which one woman died. The actor left the jail premises from the back gate with his father Allu Aravind and father-in-law Kancharla Chandrasekhar Reddy – who had come to receive him, officials said.
Upon his release, Allu Arjun’s lawyer Ashok Reddy said that the actor’s arrest was an “illegal detention” as the jail authorities did not release him despite receiving an order copy from the Telangana High Court yesterday.
“They received an order copy from the High Court but despite that, they didn’t release him…They will have to answer. This is an illegal detention. We will take legal action…As of now, he has been released,” he said.
Allu Arjun was arrested from his house in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad on Friday, hours after he returned from Delhi after attending the success meet of ‘Pushpa 2’. A lower court had remanded him to 14-day judicial custody. However, shortly after, the Telangana High Court granted interim bail for four weeks.
For regular bail, the actor was told to approach the Nampally court.
‘Pushpa 2’ Stampede Case
On December 4, a stampede broke out at a theatre in Hyderabad screening Allu Arjun-starrer ‘Pushpa 2’ when the actor made what the police called an “unscheduled” visit to the auditorium. During the incident, one woman was killed and her son was injured.
The Hyderabad police had registered a case against Allu Arjun, his security team, and the management of the theatre, based on a complaint filed by the victim’s husband. According to police, there was no intimation from theatre management or the actor’s team that they would be visiting the theatre. The theatre management also did not make any additional provisions regarding security to manage the crowd, officials said.
The theatre owner, general manager, and security manager were arrested on December 8.
However, hours after Allu Arjun was arrested in the case yesterday, the victim’s husband defended the actor and said that he was ready to withdraw the case.
“I am ready to withdraw the case. I was not aware of the arrest. Allu Arjun has nothing to do with the stampede in which my wife passed away,” he said.
Reactions pour in on Allu Arjun’s arrest
Several politicians and people from the film industry came in support of Allu Arjun and slammed his arrest.
BRS leader KT Rama Rao hit out at the Congress government in Telangana, calling the action against the actor a “pinnacle of insecurity of rulers”.
“I totally sympathise with the victims of the stampede but who failed really? Treating Allu Arjun as a common criminal is uncalled for especially for something he isn’t directly responsible. There is always space for respect and dignified conduct. I strongly condemn high-handed behaviour of the government,” he said.
Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw called the stampede incident a “poor arrangement by the state and local administration”. According to him, Congress has “no respect” for the creative industry.
“…The arrest of Allu Arjun proves it yet again. The mishap at Sandhya Theatre was a clear case of poor arrangements by the state and local administration. Now, to deflect that blame, they are indulging in such publicity stunts. The Telangana Government should assist those affected and punish those making the arrangements that day instead of continuously attacking film personalities,” he wrote on X.