Officials have reported that the venue of the Hathras stampede was inadequately small to handle the vast crowd that gathered on Tuesday afternoon. A woman who attended the ‘satsang’ stated that the chaos erupted as people began to disperse.
The stampede was triggered when followers rushed to collect dust from the tyre tracks of a car, as the ‘satsang’ concluded. This frenzied activity led to hundreds being trampled. Devotees had come from various districts of Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring states.
A high-level committee, headed by the Additional Director General of Police, Agra, and the Aligarh Commissioner, has been established to investigate the incident, as announced by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Legal Action Against Hathras Satsang Organisers
A case has been filed against the organisers of the ‘satsang’ in Hathras. The FIR reveals that permission was granted for 80,000 people, but over 250,000 attendees were present. The uncontrollable crowd led to many being crushed on the ground. On the other side, those trying to flee through waterlogged fields were forcibly stopped by the organisers wielding sticks, further escalating the pressure and causing more casualties, according to the FIR.
Police and administrative officials attempted to manage the situation and transport the injured to hospitals, but the organisers reportedly did not cooperate. The organisers have been charged under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 110 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 126 (2) (wrongful restraint), 223 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant), and 238 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the new Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
The Controversial Godman Narayan Saakar Hari
Self-styled guru Narayan Saakar Hari, born Suraj Pal, claims a background with the Intelligence Bureau and has a history of drawing large crowds with his spiritual gatherings. Born in Bahadur Nagari village, he initially worked as a head constable with the Local Intelligence Unit of the UP police before resigning in 1999 to pursue spirituality.
Currently, Narayan Saakar Hari is likely to be arrested following the stampede, which claimed over 100 lives. He is believed to be at his ‘ashram’ in Mainpuri, roughly 100 km from the event site. Senior police officials, along with forensic units, have been deployed at both the stampede site and his ashram.
The Aftermath and Official Response
In the aftermath of the tragedy, 121 people, including over 100 women and seven children, were confirmed dead, with 28 others injured. The Uttar Pradesh government has announced compensation of ₹ 2 lakh for the families of the deceased and ₹ 50,000 for the injured. Both President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi have expressed their condolences to the victims’ families.
The FIR highlights the organisers’ failure to manage the crowd, the inadequate police presence, and efforts to destroy evidence. Despite assurances from Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath of a thorough investigation, no arrests have been made yet, and the godman himself has not been named as an accused.
Former Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has called for identifying the human errors that led to the tragedy and implementing measures to prevent such incidents in the future. The Chief Minister is expected to visit Hathras soon to oversee the investigation and address the public concern.
The investigation remains ongoing, and the state police chief has stated that actions will be taken based on the findings, without drawing premature conclusions.
