PURI: The first Rath Yatra under the newly-elected BJP government in Odisha started on a tragic note as a male devotee died and several others sustained injuries when a stampede-like situation arose during the pulling of the chariots of the Holy Trinity on Sunday evening.
While the deceased has been identified as Lalit Bagarti of Saintala in Balangir district, the condition of one of the injured is said to be critical. The incident took place near the Hindi school, about 200 metres from Simhadwar of the Jagannath temple when there was a mad rush to pull the Taladhwaja chariot of Lord Balabhadra - the first to roll.
Eyewitnesses said the tussle among the devotees to lay hands on the ropes and pull the chariot led to the situation. The deceased devotee fell in the push and was trampled by others. At least, five others also fell and sustained injuries. Volunteers shifted all of them to the district headquarters hospital where the doctors declared one dead.
This apart, over 300 devotees were hospitalized due to various reasons including dehydration, suffocation and injuries during chariot pulling as the city was gripped by extreme heat and humidity throughout the day.
The Grand Road teemed with a sea of devotees as lakhs converged to take part in the festival with President Droupadi Murmu in attendance this year. This is the first time that the President of India participated in the festival. Murmu also pulled the Taladhwaja chariot.
In a stellar display of unity by keeping aside political rivalry, the grand event saw the leader of the Opposition and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik alongside President Murmu, Governor Raghubar Das, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and his deputies KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida, besides Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan share stage and pay obeisance to the deities.
When Naveen Patnaik arrived at the venue and went to the special stage where Murmu was seated and offered his greetings to her from the ground, Pradhan came down and invited him to the dias. Naveen was offered a seat beside the Governor. He later went down to the three chariots and offered his prayers.
This Rath Yatra is considered unique as all three rituals of Netra Utsav, Nabajaubana Darshan and Rath Yatra are being held on the same day. A similar celestial arrangement had occurred 53 years ago, in 1971.
As per schedule, the temple servitors began the daily chores and rituals at 4 am. The deities were then escorted in the ceremonial pahandi by the daita servitors to their respective chariots. Lord Balabhadra was the first to be taken to his Taladhwaja chariot followed by Devi Subhadra to Darpadalana and Lord Jagannath to Nandighosha. As soon as the idol of Lord Jagannath was brought out of Simhadwar, cries of Hari Bol, Jai Jagannath and hulhuli filled the air. The pahandi was completed by 2.20 pm.
Man died of ‘cardiac arrest’, not stampede, say police
Puri Shankaracharya Swamy Neeschalananda Saraswati accompanied by his disciples arrived from Govardhan Peeth and offered prayers to the deities on the chariots. Gajapati Dibyasingha Deb came next in a decorated palanquin from his palace and performed chhera pahanra (ceremonial sweeping around the deities with a golden broom) on the three chariots. This ritual was completed by 4.40 pm.
After fixing wooden horses to Taladhwaja, the devotees were allowed to pull it by 4.50 pm. Devi Subhadra’s Darpadalana was pulled next at around 6 pm followed by Lord Jagannath’s Nandighosha at 6.45 pm. Since the three chariots could not reach Gundicha temple on the day, they will be pulled to the shrine on Monday morning.
As the chariot pulling was halted for the day, the Chief Minister along with Chief Secretary Manoj Ahuja and Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling rushed to the DHH to meet the injured and take stock of the treatment provided to them. Majhi announced an ex gratia of `4 lakh to the kin of the deceased and free treatment to the injured.
Meanwhile, the state police have denied the stampede and said the man died of cardiac arrest. “There was no stampede near the temple. Investigation reveals the man experienced difficulty in breathing and complained of chest pain. He was rushed to the hospital and passed away while undergoing treatment,” said ADG Law and Order, Sanjay Kumar.
Police said the gathering in Puri town on the day was close to 10 lakh. Devotees and visitors said there was a huge rush, including inside the inner cordon, and the police faced a tough challenge to control the crowd.