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India's deadly Hathras stampede: Preacher who held gathering not found, says police

Number of people present was more than triple the permitted capacity at the religious gathering, where 121 devotees died

Around 250,000 people had gathered at the Hindu religious congregation in northern India, where more than 100 people died in a stampede, more than triple the capacity permitted by authorities, according to a police document reviewed by Reuters. According to news agency ANI, the death toll has risen to 121 on Wednesday.

The stampede happened at a religious function in a village in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh state, about 200 km (125 miles) southeast of New Delhi. According to the document, police had given permission for 80,000 people to gather.

After the Uttar Pradesh police carried out a search operation at Ram Kutir Charitable Trust in Mainpuri district in search of 'Bhole Baba' (a popular preacher), who held a Satsang in Hathras where a stampede took place, Deputy Superintendent of Police Sunil Kumar revealed that the preacher was not found inside the campus.

"We did not find Baba ji inside the campus...He is not here..." said Deputy SP Sunil Kumar.

A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against Devprakash Madhukar, referred to as 'Mukhya Sewadar' and other organisers of a prayer meeting congregation 'Satsang'.

As per the FIR lodged in the case the Satsang was held by Suraj Pal who also goes by the names Narayan Hari, Saakar Vishwa Hari Bhole Baba or simply 'Bhole Baba' near GT Road in the Phulrai Mugalgarhi village in the Hathras district.

The main organiser Madhukar had sought permission from the administration for around 80,000 people and the administration made the traffic and safety arrangements accordingly.

The stampede occurred when a crowd of devotees started pushing towards the stage after the event to touch the preacher, who was coming down from a stage, Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, has said.

After the Satsang got over due to the uncontrollable crowd leaving the venue, those who were sitting on the ground were crushed. Organising committee members used sticks to attempt to forcibly stop the crowd running in the water and mud-filled fields, due to which the pressure of the crowd kept increasing and women, children, and men kept getting crushed, the FIR detailed.

Meanwhile, an eyewitness in the Hathras stampede incident, Shakuntala Devi said, "There was a Satsang of Bhole Baba going on. Right after the Satsang finished, several people started coming out from there. A stampede took place as the road was uneven and people fell on each other..."

The victims included 108 women and seven children, Manoj Kumar Singh, Uttar Pradesh state's chief secretary, told reporters.

Aligarh DM Vishak G Iyer said that as many as 23 bodies have been brought to Aligarh and a total of three injured people are receiving treatment and out of them one is in critical condition.

"A total of 23 bodies have been brought to Aligarh...Three injured people from the Hathras incident are getting treatment at Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College. Out of them, two are in stable condition whereas one is in critical condition. We have talked to the hospital administration and the procedure to take the (critical) patient to the ICU is underway..." said Aligarh DM Vishak G Iyer.

Hathras Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Manjeet Singh said that the procedure of identifying the bodies brought is underway. 19 out of a total of 32 have been identified.

"A total of 116 people have died so far...32 bodies were brought here and 19 of them have been identified. We are identifying the rest of them..." said Hathras Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Manjeet Singh.

Congress MP KL Sharma appealed to the state government that when such events are organised, they should ensure the proper safety of the people.

"I want to appeal to the state government that if such events are organised, they should also take care of the preparation and ensure proper safety of the people. I got to know that several women have lost their lives. The compensation amount should have been more, keeping the condition of the family in mind..." said Congress MP KL Sharma.

Reacting to the same incident, Congress MP Imran Masood said, "There are 32 bodies here and nine injured people, including one female police officer. A lot of them are yet to be identified...Right now, everyone is focused on providing relief to those who have suffered..."

Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary called the Hathras incident "unfortunate"."

Speaking to reporters, Samrat Choudhary said, "It is extremely unfortunate. The government is reviewing it. It is unfortunate that so many people lost their lives..."

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