116 dead in Hathras ‘satsang’ stampede
About 116 people, many of whom were women and children, lost their lives in a stampede during a ‘satsang’ (a kind of religious event) on Tuesday (July 2) in Ratibhanpur village in Hathras district (on its border with Etah district) of Uttar Pradesh.
The ‘satsang’ was being conducted by a religious preacher and his wife. The preacher has been organising such events under the Sakaar Vishwa Hari Bhole Baba banner for over 20 years.
The Sikandra Rau subdivisional magistrate Ravendra Kumar told the news agency PTI that the stampede took place when devotees tried to get a glimpse of the Bhole Baba; many also wanted to collect some soil from around the baba’s feet. Most deaths were due to suffocation.
A police officer said more than 1,15,000 people had gathered for the event.
Earlier, Umesh Kumar Tripathi, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of Etah, said, “Currently, we have 27 bodies at the Etah Medical College mortuary, including 25 women and two men. … Based on rough estimates, at least 150 injured are being treated here.”
Officials noted that Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has formed a team, including the additional director general of the Agra Zone and the police commissioner of Aligarh, to investigate the causes of the Hathras stampede.
