Hathras stampede: Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reached stampede-affected Hathras on Friday morning. Earlier in the day, he also visited Aligarh and met those killed in the Hathras stampede that claimed the lives of 121 people. Gandhi said that the compensation given to the families of victims are not adequate and that the government should give more.
"It is a sad incident. Several people have died. I don't want to say this from a political prism but there have been deficiencies on the part of the administration and the important thing is that maximum compensation should be given as they are poor families. I request UP CM Yogi Adityanath to provide compensation open-heartedly. If there is a delay in the compensation, it will not benefit anyone. I had a personal conversation with the family members of the deceased and they told me that there was no police arrangement. They are in shock and I just wanted to understand their situation," he told the media.
Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai, state Congress in-charge Avinash Pande, party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate and other office bearers accompanied Gandhi to Hathras. The Uttar Pradesh Congress chief also blamed the state government for the incident.
CM Yogi ordered a judicial probe
Earlier on Tuesday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath visited Hathras and met with those who were injured and the kin of the deceased in the stampede. He also announced a judicial probe into the tragedy which will be headed by a retired High Court judge. The CM has announced financial assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 each to the injured.
FIR against organisers
Meanwhile, Police have lodged an FIR against the organisers of the congregation, accusing them of hiding evidence and flouting conditions, with 2. 5 lakh people gathering for the event, exceeding the permitted capacity of 80,000. The Uttar Pradesh police on Thursday said they have arrested six members of the organising committee of preacher Bhole Baba's 'satsang' in connection with the case.
Hathras stampede claims 121 lives
According to the Uttar Pradesh government, the majority of the 121 individuals who died in the stampede during the 'satsang' in Sikandra Rao have been identified. The event drew devotees from various districts across Uttar Pradesh and neighboring states. They said the tragedy occurred when devotees tried to get a glimpse of Bhole Baba as the event ended. They also wanted to collect some soil from around the Baba’s feet. District Magistrate Ashish Kumar said the satsang was a private function for which the sub-divisional magistrate had granted permission.
(With inputs from agencies)
