NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused the Uttar Pradesh government of deliberately underreporting the number of fatalities in the January 29 stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj, referencing a BBC News Hindi investigation.
The report claimed at least 82 people died during the incident, far more than the official toll of 37, highlighting that the deaths of economically disadvantaged victims were "erased" from official counts .
Gandhi, speaking on X, condemned the suppression. He said, “BBC report reveals that figures of deaths in Kumbh Mela stampede were hidden. Like in COVID, the bodies of the poor were erased from the statistics. Like after every major railway accident the truth is suppressed.”
He slammed the BJP-led government, stating, “This is the BJP model, if there is no counting of the poor, then there is no accountability either!”
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also weighed in, accusing the UP government of presenting “false statistics”. He echoed the BBC's toll of 82 and contrasted it sharply with the official figure of 37.