A holy occasion turned a crying curse along the Sangam riverfront before light broke on Wednesday morning. Dozens of devotees were trampled to death, hundreds wounded and multiple scores left stricken in a calamity almost waiting to transpire at the zealously overrun Mahakumbh in Allahabad.
After beating around the bush for the whole day amid what appeared to be a deliberate attempt on the part of the government machinery to black out information on the extent of the tragedy and create an impression that nothing much had happened, the police officially put the death toll at 30 and those injured at 60. Reuters put the death toll at 40, quoting three police sources.
Vaibhav Krishna, the DIG of the Mahakumbh, told a news conference in the evening: “There were some people who broke the barricades at Akhara Marg (1.5km from Sangam) and crushed other people who were sleeping on the ground and waiting for the Brahm Muhurt (auspicious time) to take bath. We took 90 injured people to hospital but could save only 60 of them. Of the 30 devotees who have died, we have identified 25 so far.”
An injured devotee being carried on a stretcher after the stampede at the Mahakumbh on Wednesday. PTI
Many devotees and eyewitnesses suggested the toll and the numbers of those injured could be much higher.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who has positioned himself as the host of the biggest congregation on earth, urged people not to pay heed to “rumours” and merely said there had been injuries before going silent. Later in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths of “holy souls”.
Devastated devotees at the site of the stampede. PTI
Adityanath appeared to put the blame on devotees after having crowed for days about unprecedented security arrangements, with Modi lending able support by gloating about a “Digital Mahakumbh”. The chief minister said there was “tremendous pressure” from the crowds and that people had ignored advice to take the holy dip wherever they were along the river instead of trying to flock to the “nose” of the Sangam.
Sections of the TV media, widely seen as beholden to the Modi government, largely ignored the tragedy through the day and received a smack across the face from viewers who took to social media to vent their anger.
Late on Wednesday night, a teary-eyed Adityanath told reporters in Lucknow that Kumbh tragedy was “heartbreaking” and announced a compensation of ₹25 lakh for the family of each of the deceased. He also ordered a judicial probe.
Agony writ large on her face, a devotee wriggles under a barricade to escape the crowd rush after the stampede. PTI
Many devotees complained that police had blocked the pontoon bridges and stopped them from proceeding towards the Sangam. Eyewitnesses said the police were pushing the devotees back with lathis and suddenly started hitting them with the batons, triggering a panicked rush in which people ran helter-skelter and fell on each other.
According to the chief minister, 8 to 10 crore devotees were present at the Kumbh for the Amrit Snan on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya.
Krishna, the Mahakumbh DIG, said earlier in the day: “I can’t confirm the number of deceased and injured. A heavy gate collapsed under the pressure of devotees and some people were seriously injured.”
“Everything is fine now. We are ready for the Amrit Snan of the sadhus of the akharas. They are reaching Sangam now to take a bath,” added Vaibhav, after the government had initially called off the Amrit Snan but later allowed sadhus to take the holy dip from 11am.
Eyewitness accounts
Ramesh Kumar, 45, from Nalanda in Bihar, said: “The police had blocked all the pontoon bridges in the night itself and asked the devotees not to go to the Sangam area. I was at Sector 4 (near Akhara Marg) when the police began pushing the crowd back with their lathis around 1.45am. Nobody had jumped the barricades, but the police started beating us with lathis.
“The people ran in all directions, some of them removed the barricades. There were women with children. They fell on the ground and were crushed under the feet of the panic-stricken devotees. Some devotees who were sleeping on both sides of the road were crushed under the feet of those who were trying to run away from there.”
Ramesh said he had not been able to trace his wife and three children since the stampede. “I don’t know where they are,” he said.
Mina Devi, 35, from Deoria in Uttar Pradesh said: “I can’t find my mother. I held her hand when she was lying on the ground. Some policemen pushed me aside, put her on a stretcher and took her away.
Mina said: “Later, a policeman asked me to go to Sector 2 Central Hospital (on the Kumbh grounds) but the doctors there directed me to Swarooprani Hospital in Allahabad city. I have not found her yet.”
“We were about 1.5km from the Sangam when the stampede happened. The police were asking us to take a bridge that would have entailed a detour of 30km. The government is treating the devotees in a very inhuman manner,” she added.
Sanjay Pandey, a devotee, said he saw at least 12 bodies at Sector 18 in Tenct City itself. He said many devotees were also crushed under the weight of bags and other luggage.
Sarojini, a devotee from Karnataka, told PTI Videos: “The devotees were cramped for room and there was a sudden jostling in which we got trapped. Many of us fell down and the crowd went out of control. There was no chance to escape, there was pushing from all sides.”
Another woman at the hospital, whose child suffered injuries, said: “We had nowhere to go. Some people who pushed us were laughing while we begged them for kindness towards the children.”
Surendra Kumar Chaube, 50, of Ghaziabad said: “The Ganga and the Yamuna flow through many districts of the country. We are at the Kumbh to bathe at the Triveni Sangam (the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and the mythical Saraswati), which we will find nowhere else in the country. Why doesn’t the government want us to reach the Sangam? Is it because they have reserved the Sangam for VVIPs and the sadhus of the akharas? The chief minister should have announced that common devotees shouldn’t visit the Mahakumbh and take the holy dip somewhere else. Why did they publicise the Mahakumbh across the country?”
CM shifts blame
On Wednesday morning, Adityanath appeared to indirectly blame the devotees, saying they should have taken the holy dip at the points nearest to their camps along the 12km stretch of the river instead of trying to gather at the Sangam.
“There are 8-10 crore devotees in Prayagraj (Allahabad) today. About 3 crore people took the holy dip till 8.30am. There was tremendous pressure from the crowd in the Mela area. Between 1am and 2am, some people tried to jump over the barricades at Akhara Marg and suffered serious injuries. I appeal to the people not to spread rumours or pay attention to rumours,” the chief minister told reporters in Lucknow at 9am.
“There are 20 temporary ghats in the Mela area and the devotees shouldn’t try to reach the nose of the Sangam. They should take bath wherever they are along the river,” he said. “I have spoken to the sadhus and decided that they will take out their procession and do Amrit Snan once the crowd pressure eases.”
“A large number of Mela Special trains are running from Prayagraj and other stations in the city. Those who have taken bath can return home safely without any hassle,” Adityanath added.
Many devotees, however, disputed this claim. Jhinuk Mukherjee, 25, from Howrah, said: “We had booked tickets for a train to Calcutta that was supposed to originate from the Junction railway station in Allahabad. Later we received a message that it would start from Prayagraj station. Then again, six hours before the scheduled time of departure, we got a message that the train would leave from Shankargarh station, which is 60km from our hotel at the Civil Lines.”
Modi-Yogi dissonance
Although Adityanath did not confirm even a single casualty, Modi said at the beginning of an election rally in New Delhi: “We have lost some holy souls in the sad incident at the Mahakumbh. Some people have also suffered injuries. I express my condolences to the grieving families and pray for the speedy recovery of those injured.
“I am in constant touch with the UP government. Crores of devotees have reached there to mark Mauni Amavasya. The visitors are taking the holy bath uninterrupted after some initial hiccups.”
Earlier, the Prime Minister, who is to take a holy dip at the Mahakumbh on February 5, had posted on X: “The accident at the Prayagraj Mahakumbh is an extremely sad incident. I offer my deepest condolences to those who have lost their loved ones in this tragedy.”
Union home minister Amit Shah wrote on X: “I am distressed because of a sad incident at the Mahakumbh. I express my condolences to those who lost their kin in the accident. God must give them strength to bear the grief. The administration is treating the injured persons in hospitals. I am in constant touch with the CM of UP and the local administration.”
Social media users, and the chief of an akhara, took Modi, Shah and Adityanath to task for “protecting and looking after the interests” of VVIPs and treating ordinary devotees with “disdain”.
Swami Brahmanand Puri, the Mahamandaleshwar of the Niranjani Akhara, said: “The Mela administration doesn’t appear interested in managing the festival, it is interested in appeasing the VIPs. I saw on many occasions that officers were busy making the VIPs happy when the devotees were struggling to reach the Kumbh.
“The administration has created hurdles for the people. We had warned the state administration, but they didn’t listen to us. As a result, some people have lost their children and some have lost their fathers.”
In BJP corridors, where there is undying speculation about a power struggle between Shah and Adityanath to be Modi’s heir, the claim of those that Modi prefers Shah, grew louder after the Kumbh tragedy.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia said: “The CM of UP should be in his state to look after the management of the Mahakumbh instead of holding election rallies in Delhi.”
Security arrangements
The government has been tom-tomming the security arrangements at the Mahakumbh, which was clearly found wanting on Wednesday.
A helicopter had been pressed into service to regulate the crowd on Wednesday on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya at what Modi has dubbed a “Digital Mahakumbh”.
Adityanath has claimed that an artificial intelligence-backed security system has been operational at the Mahakumbh 24/7, 2,500 drone cameras have been sending second-to-second updates to the Integrated Control and Command Centre, and 720 CCTV cameras have been transmitting to the police control room pictures of devotees moving towards the Sangam from every corner of the Mela. Cops on 4,000 motorboats were on vigil on Wednesday. Over 20,000 security personnel, including 15,000 jawans of the Uttar Pradesh police, were on high alert and 30 pontoon bridges erected “for the ease of devotees” in reaching the river.