More than 120 dead, mostly women, in mass panic at religious event in India | Gallery News

The death toll in a stampede outside a Hindu congregation in northern India has risen to 121, authorities said. According to a police report, the number of people present at the event was more than three times the permitted capacity.

Most of the victims were women, said Prashant Kumar, director general of police in Uttar Pradesh state, where the incident occurred on Tuesday in Hathras district.

Among the dead were 112 women and seven children. Another senior police officer, Shalabh Mathur, said more than 80 people were injured in the stampede and taken to hospitals.

The police’s First Information Report (FIR) described the chaos that prevailed when the community’s preacher – Surajpal, also known as ‘Bhole Baba’ – drove away in his car.

The cause of the deadly crush is still being investigated, but initial findings suggest that massive overcrowding, inadequate exits, bad weather and a lack of planning contributed to it.

Around 250,000 people attended the rally, although only 80,000 people were allowed in. In addition, the event took place in a tent on a muddy field.

Forensic investigators searched for evidence on site on Wednesday. Discarded clothing and shoes were scattered everywhere.

“Everyone – the entire crowd, including women and children – immediately left the venue,” said 50-year-old police officer Sheela Maurya, who was on duty when the preacher delivered a sermon.

“There wasn’t enough space and everyone fell on top of each other.”

Relatives cried out in despair as the bodies of the dead, laid out on stretchers and wrapped in white sheets, were lined up in the grounds of a local hospital. A bus arriving there brought more victims, their bodies lying on the seats inside.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath described the stampede as “heartbreaking” in a post on X.