SRK and his film 'Raees' mentioned in Allu Arjun's bail hearing

Allu Arjun was granted interim bail by the Telangana High Court, hours after he was sent to 14-day judicial custody in connection with the death of a woman in a stampede incident that occurred during the premiere show of Pushpa 2: The Rule last week.

The Pushpa 2 star had moved to the High Court after a lower court sent him to judicial custody for 14 days.

During the bail hearing, his lawyer recalled the 'Raees' stampede incident and argued the key question before the court was "... is somebody doing a rash or negligent act?"

In that context, he described the stampede involving SRK, and said the Bollywood actor "threw clothes at the station, which led to a stampede". In that case, he was not found criminally liable, Arjun's lawyer said.

"The actor was coming... everybody knew that. Even the police knew. Here the actor was not even doing anything whereas, in SRK's case, the actor threw balls and crowds jumped to grab them."

The court eventually ruled in favour of Arjun, granting him interim bail for four weeks. The court observed that Allu Arjun's status as a hugely popular actor could not compromise his right to liberty.

"... just because he is an actor... he cannot be held like this," the High Court said.

The stampede incident occurred at Sandhya theatre.

Earlier in the day, police arrived at the residence of the actor and took him and his bodyguard in custody.

Allu Arjun, one of the biggest actors in the country, who boasts of a strong fan base, was taken to Chikkadpally police station.

The case was registered in the police station.

Victim's husband ready to withdraw case against Allu Arjun

Meanwhile, the victim's husband said he is willing to withdraw the case since he does not hold the actor responsible for the stampede or the death of his wife.

The victim's husband Bhaskar told reporters as quoted by Hindustan Times: "We only went to Sandhya Theatre that day because my son wanted to watch the movie. It's not Allu Arjun's fault that he visited the theatre that day."

"I am ready to withdraw my case," he said.

What happened at the theatre?

The chaos broke out at the Sandhya Theatre in Hyderabad's RTC Crossroads at around 10:30 pm on December 4 when a massive crowd rushed to the theatre to watch Allu Arjun in action. To everyone's surprise, the actor was also present at the screening.

Revathi, 39, came to the theatre with her husband and two children from Dilsukhnagar to attend the premiere show.

Revathi was rushed to a hospital where she succumbed to her injuries while her young son, who was also wounded, is in critical condition at the clinic.

As per reports, the crowd barged into the theatre as Allu Arjun arrived.

A number of people tried to get in close proximity with the star who was guarded by heavy security.

Police also had to lathi-charge to disperse the crowd that had turned unruly.

Later, Allu Arjun waved at his fans from the sunroof of his car where he was escorted safely by his security.

Allu Arjun grieved the woman's death and announced a monetary support of INR 25 lakh (USD 29,481) for the family.

Allu posted on X, "Deeply heartbroken by the tragic incident at Sandhya Theatre. My heartfelt condolences go out to the grieving family during this unimaginably difficult time. I want to assure them they are not alone in this pain and will meet the family personally.