A day after the stampede in Hathras where at least 121 people were killed, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced on Wednesday a judicial investigation into the incident as he met with those injured in the incident. He said that six of those killed were from other states, including four from Haryana and one each from Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. CM Yogi added that retired administration and police officials will be part of the judicial investigation into the stampede. The committee will determine who was responsible for the tragedy and whether it was a conspiracy, according to the chief minister.
Adityanath did not rule out a conspiracy in the stampede. He also stated that the “sevadars” (volunteers working for the’satsang’ organisers) should have transported the victims to the hospital. People were dying, and the “sevadars” had fled, he claimed. The chief minister added that the government will take steps to prevent such incidents from occurring again, and that a standard operating procedure for religious congregations may be implemented.
Here are ten latest developments in the Hathras satsang stampede incident:
- The Uttar Pradesh Police on Wednesday filed a FIR against the congregation’s organisers, accusing them of violating conditions by gathering 2.5 lakh people for an event that only allowed 80,000 people.
- It also claimed that the organisers failed to cooperate in traffic management and hid evidence following the stampede, which occurred when people gathered to collect soil from where the religious preacher’s vehicle had passed.
- At a press conference, the chief minister stated, “When the gentleman’s (Saakar Vishwa Hari Bhole Baba) preaching was finished, he came down from the stage and his convoy moved forward, and a group of women approached him to touch him.” A crowd gathered around them and began climbing on top of one another.
- Adityanath stated, “The’sevadars’ kept pushing people, causing the accident. It is unfortunate that the’sevadars’, who do not permit the administration to attend such events, attempted to cover up the situation. But when the administration began transporting the injured to the hospital, the majority of the’sevadars’ fled.”
- The chief minister visited the injured at the district hospital and inquired about their health. He met eyewitnesses to the stampede at the police lines and gathered information about the incident’s sequence.
- A public interest litigation demanding a CBI investigation into the stampede that killed 121 people at a religious congregation in Hathras was filed in the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday. Advocate Gaurav Dwivedi filed a PIL claiming that district officials are “fully responsible” for the carelessness that caused the stampede.
- Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra slammed the BJP on Wednesday over the Hathras stampede, claiming that such incidents continue to occur but that the government is only interested in “whitewashing” these issues.
- Taking to X, Gandhi said, “Three times more crowd than permitted, no administration on the spot, no crowd management arrangements, no way to escape from the scorching heat, no medical team, no ambulance after the incident, no one for help, no doctors and facilities in the hospital … such a long list of negligence but no one is accountable.”
- Who is responsible for the tragic incident that happened in Hathras, the Congress general secretary asked.
- “Sometimes hundreds of people die due to a bridge collapse, sometimes due to train accidents, sometimes due to stampedes. Instead of whitewashing, it is the responsibility of the government to take action and prepare a plan to prevent such accidents,” she said. But accountability is not fixed and such accidents keep happening, Gandhi said, adding that this is a very sad situation.
