Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday offered condolences over the Hathras stampede incident. The death toll from the accident has risen to 121 while the police have identified most of the victims. Most of the casualties were among children and women. Devotees on Tuesday came to the ‘Satsang’ from various districts of Uttar Pradesh as well as neighbouring states. In a post on X, the Russian Embassy said, “President of Russia Vladimir Putin sent a condolence message to President of India Droupadi Murmu & Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi over the tragic stampede in Uttar Pradesh.
A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court over the Hathras stampede incident alleging the administration’s failure to control the crowd present at the ‘Satsang’. The plea, filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, further alleges that serious lapses and negligence in organising the event of such a large scale have been found which shows an “unfaithful duty of care towards the public by the government authorities.” Meanwhile, Bhole Baba, the priest for whom the event was organised is absconding. The plea has raised questions about the failure of the administration and the police. In one of the worst such tragedies in recent years, 121 devotees were suffocated to death and their bodies piled atop each other in the stampede that took place in the district's Phulrai village on Tuesday. The organisers sought permission for about 80,000 people for which police and administration made arrangements. However, over 2.5 lakh people gathered in the event. By not following the conditions of the permission, GT road witnessed traffic jam and police and administration officials were working to clear it.