More than 100 people, including women and children, were killed after a stampede broke out at a ‘satsang’ organised by a self-styled godman, Bhole Baba aka Narayan Saakar Hari, in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras
Our Bureau
Hathras (UP)/New Delhi
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear a plea seeking direction to appoint a five-member expert committee under the supervision of a retired Supreme Court judge to enquire into the Hathras stampede incident where more than 100 people were killed on July 2.
A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the matter will be listed. “I have given my listing orders already. It will be listed,” told the CJI to the lawyer Vishal Tiwari who mentioned the matter for early hearing.
The plea sought direction from the committee to suggest and frame guidelines and safety measures to avoid such incidents in a large number of public gatherings.
The petition further sought direction to the State of Uttar Pradesh to submit a status report before the apex court in the Hathras stampede incident and initiate legal action against the persons, authorities and officials for their negligent conduct.
It asked the top court to direct all the State governments to issue directions and guidelines to prevent stampedes or other incidents for the safety of the public in organising any religious events or other events where a large number of public gatherings. More than 100 people, including women and children, were killed after a stampede broke out at a ‘satsang’ organised by a self-styled godman, Bhole Baba aka Narayan Saakar Hari, in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras.
As per reports, the event drew in a crowd of over two lakh devotees, while permission was only granted to have around 80,000 attendees.
In his plea, the advocate cited several such stampede-like events that have occurred in the past including the Kumbh Mela stampede in 1954 where around 800 persons were reported dead, the Mecca Masjid stampede of 2007 where 16 were reported dead, the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine deaths in 2022, the deaths during Dussehra celebrations at the Gandhi Maidan in Patna in 2014 and the death of around 104 Sabarimala devotees at Pulmedu in Idukki.
Meanwhile, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the stampede in Hathras recommended action against six officials for negligence in performing their duties, following which they have been suspended from their services. The local SDM, CO, Tehsildar, Inspector, and Chowki in charge have been held responsible for negligence in performing their duties.
The SIT probing the stampede mishap recorded 119 statements and submitted a report on Tuesday stating that the committee that organized the ‘Satsang’ was responsible for inviting more people than permitted.
The program was not taken seriously by the said officials, and senior officials were not even informed, following which the SIT recommended action against the concerned officials.
As per the report, the Sub-district Magistrate of Sikandrarao granted permission for the event without inspecting the venue and did not inform senior officials.
During the investigation, statements were collected from a total of 125 individuals, including administrative and police officials, the general public, and eyewitnesses.
Additionally, copies of news articles related to the incident, on-site videography, photographs, and video clippings were reviewed. The key findings of the investigation committee’s report are as follows:
In the preliminary investigation, the SIT held the event organizers primarily responsible for the accident based on eyewitness accounts and other evidence.
Based on the investigation and actions taken so far, the investigation committee has not ruled out the possibility of a major conspiracy behind the accident and has emphasized the need for a thorough investigation.
The organizers obtained permission for the event by concealing facts. The conditions applicable for the permission were not followed. They did not make adequate and smooth arrangements despite inviting an unexpected crowd, nor did they comply with the conditions set by the local administration for the program.
People associated with the organizing committee have been found guilty of spreading chaos. The SIT concluded that the organizing committee misbehaved with the police and attempted to prevent the local police from inspecting the program venue.
The Satsang performers and the crowd were allowed to mingle without any security arrangements. Despite the large crowd, no barricading or passage arrangements were made, and when the accident occurred, members of the organizing committee fled from the scene.
Devprakash Madhukar, the main accused in the Hathras stampede incident, was sent to 14 days of judicial custody after being produced before the Chief Judicial Magistrate Court last week.
