At least 116 dead in stampede at religious event in Hathras
Hathras/ Lucknow: More than 100 people, mostly women, died on Tuesday following a major stampede during a religious event at the Phulrai village in Sikandra Rau area of Hathras district, Uttar Pradesh. The tragedy occurred as people tried to exit a specially erected tent after a sermon by religious preacher Bhole Baba.
Aligarh Range Inspector General of Police Shalabh Mathur put the death toll at 116.
Twenty-seven bodies were brought to a hospital in the neighbouring Etah district. Senior Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar Singh said 23 of them were women. And 89 lay dead in Hathras itself.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi have expressed their condolences. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has ordered a probe and instructed the Additional Director General of Police and the Commissioner to submit a report within 24 hours.
“It was a satsang meeting of Bhole Baba. Temporary permission was granted for the gathering at the spot on the border of Etah and Hathras district on Tuesday afternoon,” said Inspector General Shalabh Mathur.
Police stated that preliminary findings suggest suffocation at the crowded venue led to discomfort among attendees, prompting them to flee and causing the stampede. The event took place under hot and humid conditions, exacerbating the situation.
District Magistrate of Hathras, Ashish Kumar, explained that the function was held inside a tent, creating a humid environment and causing restlessness. “Immediately after the sermon, they rushed out, leading to the stampede,” he said. Eyewitnesses provided conflicting accounts. Satsang participants blamed the slippery ground for the stampede. Some claimed that after the sermon, devotees attempting to touch Bhole Baba’s feet fell, triggering the stampede. “This is a matter of investigation,” Kumar noted.
Sikandra Rao police station SHO blamed “overcrowding” at the ‘satsang’.
One survivor, Jyoti, recounted the horror: “There was a huge crowd gathered at the spot. It all happened when the satsang ended, and everyone was in haste to leave the enclosure. There was no way out, and everybody fell on each other. When I tried to move out, motorcycles parked outside blocked the way. Many fainted while others died,” she said from her bed at Etah district hospital.
Another eyewitness described the chaos: “There was a lot of screaming and shouting on the spot. People were not even looking at each other. Women and children kept falling. The crowd was running over them. There was no one to save them.”
SSP Hathras Rajesh Kumar Singh stated that more than 15,000 devotees had assembled for the congregation. The small hall and narrow exit were insufficient to accommodate the large crowd. Most attendees hailed from nearby villages.
Matadin Saroj, a government official, said the incident happened so suddenly that the administration had no time to arrange ambulances for the injured or deceased. People were transported to neighbouring hospitals in buses, tractors, and trucks.
The injured were taken to the district hospital in Etah, where the district administration dispatched teams of doctors to treat them. Police forces from nearby stations were also sent to assist with relief and rescue operations. Senior officials have reached the spot, and efforts are ongoing.
The Prime Minister’s Office announced an ex-gratia compensation of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister’s National Relief Fund for the next of kin of each person killed in the stampede. The injured would be given Rs 50,000.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath made a similar announcement.
Adityanath also stated that a first information report (FIR) will be filed against the organizers of the event, and stringent action will be taken against them. Authorities are investigating the cause of the stampede and have urged the public to remain calm as the situation develops.
