121 people died in a stampede in Hathras, Uttar Pradesh, caused by a chaotic rush to collect dust kicked up by a self-proclaimed godman’s car. Men, women, and children were crushed as they tripped over each other. The tragedy was worsened by the organizers’ negligence and insufficient police presence.

The stampede occurred during a ‘satsang‘ led by self-proclaimed godman Suraj Pal, also known as Narayan Saakar Hari, whose followers referred to him as Bhole Baba.

According to the FIR, the organizers of the ‘satsang’ requested permission for an assembly of around 80,000 people, but more than 2.5 lakh people showed up.

After the ‘godman’ finished the gathering and was leaving, his followers rushed to collect dust from the trail left by his car’s tires. This rush led to a deadly stampede where many people, including women and children, were crushed.

According to the FIR, Suraj Pal’s helpers, known as sevadars, were wielding sticks to prevent the crowd from approaching the ‘godman’. As a result, people in the rushing crowd fell on each other, causing suffocation to those underneath.

Eyewitnesses reported that approximately 40 police officers were assigned to manage security at the large gathering. They were unable to control the situation when the stampede occurred.

A total of 121 people lost their lives in the stampede, with 28 others hospitalized. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has promised that the state police will thoroughly investigate the incident. However, no arrests have been made yet. Importantly, the ‘godman’ has not been charged in the case and is currently missing. The FIR identifies his aide, Devprakash Madhukar, as the main organizer of the event, along with other unidentified suspects.

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