At least 121 people, including women and children, died due to suffocation and fatal injuries after a stampede broke out at a religious congregation in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras district on July 2, 2024. (Photo | Parveen Negi, EPS)
According to Etah SP Rajesh Kumar Singh, as soon as the prayer meeting got over, people who were packed in a small hall rushed out. They fell over each other, leading to stampede.
Police filed an FIR against the organisers, accusing them of hiding evidence and flouting conditions with 2.5 lakh people crammed into a venue in which only 80,000 were permitted. People gathered to attend the satsang held by Bhole Baba, a popular preacher who has followers in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Haryana.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday announced a judicial probe into the incident by a retired HC judge.
The Hathras district administration has filed an FIR against the organisers including chief Sewadar Devprakash Madhukar and several other unnamed organisers.
However, the godman Bole Baba has not been named in the FIR. While the state government has put around 34 districts of western and central UP on high alert, the Hathras police have launched a manhunt for Bhole Baba.