LUCKNOW: At least two persons were suffocated to death in stampede and several others were rushed to the hospital at the Bankey Bihari temple in Mathura during mangala aarti as part of midnight celebrations of Janmashtami late night on Friday.
“Prima facie, the cause of death is suffocation due to a heavy rush during the mangala aarti,” District Magistrate Navneet Singh Chahal said.
The deceased have been identified as a 55-year-old woman from Noida and a 65-year-old devotee from Jabalpur, officials said. The incident happened when devotees numbering thousands thronged the famous temple to offer prayers and participate in the rituals, packing the temple courtyard to the brim and having very little room to breathe.
The incident happened at around 2 am during the Mangala Aarti as the police had to restrict the entry of devotees after some started fainting inside the temple.
“One devotee fainted at the exit gate of the temple due to which the movement of devotees was restricted. As there was huge crowd, many inside the premises were suffocated due to humidity. Two persons lost their lives,” Mathura SP Abhishek Yadav said.
A video shared by local sources showed a massive crowd gathered at the temple with people gasping for air. Police personnel were seen carrying a person, who had apparently fainted due to suffocation from overcrowding.Earlier in the day, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited the Krishna Janmabhoomi temple in Mathura on the occasion of Janmashtami on Friday.
“Lord Krishna arrived on this earth about 5,000 years ago from today and his ‘leelas’ are celebrated in every part of the country and the world even today,” Adityanath said.The entire city of Mathura was illuminated with lights on the occasion. Devotees were seen dancing in the midnight celebrations.