New Delhi rly station stampede: Don’t take us for granted, HC tells railways

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday told the Indian Railways not to take it for granted as it expressed its displeasure over the national transporter’s failure to file an affidavit in a matter related to last year’s stampede at the New Delhi railway station, when passengers were waiting to board trains for Prayagraj, where the Maha Kumbh was underway.

A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia questioned why the authorities were “so lax” and if they were waiting for another incident to happen as the affidavit was “not in sight”, even though it had to be filed by March 26, 2025.

“Do not take the court for granted. We required you to file an affidavit. What did you do? Just to sail through the pressure at that moment when this petition was filed, a statement by the highest law officer of the country was made on behalf of the railways. It has been a year by now and you have not been able to file that affidavit.

What does this indicate? We do not appreciate this,” the bench said.