Tirupati stampede: Video shows exact moment of devotees jostling for distribution of darshan tickets
Tirupati stampede: Videos of the incident shared on social media show police administering CPR on a couple of woman devotees and injured persons being shifted in ambulances from the spot.
Tirupati stampede latest update: At least six devotees, including three women, died and several others were injured in a major stampede in Tirupati on Wednesday night. The incident was reported when devotees were jostling for tickets for Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam at Lord Venkateswara Swamy temple in Tirumala Hills. The development comes as hundreds of devotees turned up from across the country for the 10-day Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam starting on January 10.
Tirupati stampede videos go viral on social media
The videos of the incident have gone viral on social media which show police administering CPR on a couple of woman devotees and injured persons being shifted in ambulances from the spot.
Other videos shared on social media showed police officers trying to manage the crowd while people can be seen pushing each other during the tense situation.
In the meantime, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Chairman BR Naidu said one body has been identified. "A DSP opened the gates…and immediately everybody pushing ahead led to this stampede and reports are emerging that six persons died," Naidu told a vernacular news channel.
"A few devotees dying in a stampede near Vishnu Nivasam in Tirupati while trying for Vaikuna Dwara Darsanam has grieved me intensely," said Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in a post on 'X'.
Chandrababu Naidu to visit Tirupati today
According to the TTD Chairman, Naidu conducted a teleconference and expressed dissatisfaction over the temple employees and said such an incident was unfortunate.
There is some suspicion that it happened due to (the temple) administration, he said and added that the CM is coming to Tirupati on Thursday to comfort the injured persons. "The CM directed us that these kinds of incidents should not recur", he said.
"Taking this as a lesson, it is incumbent upon all of us to avert these kinds of incidents in the future," said Naidu, adding the CM will announce ex–gratia on Thursday.
TTD board calls stampede ‘unfortunate’
Terming the stampede as unfortunate, TTD board member Bhanu Prakash sought the forgiveness of Srivari (Lord Venkateswara Swamy) devotees over the incident. There was some lacuna and stringent action will be taken but lost lives cannot be brought back, he said.