A grave tragedy in the Hathras stampede killed 121 people, the majority of them women in India. The tragedy happened at a religious gathering for the Hindu guru, Bhole Baba, in India’s Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh.
All the people gathered together to hear Bhole Baba’s sermon. Because the place was overcrowded, the people gathered there trampled each other to death. The tragedy in Uttar Pradesh has grieved the whole nation.
What Happened In Hathras Stampede
A huge crowd of over 2,50,000 devotees had gathered to hear the sermon of the religious leader Suraj Pal, aka Bhole Baba. All the people had gathered for a satsang (prayer meeting) in the village of Hathras in Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday. Over 80,000 people entered the venue of the main field for the prayer meeting.
Scores of people had gathered in a makeshift tent where the meeting was taking place. The organizers had placed the makeshift tent atop the muddy terrain of the venue. Bhole Baba is a Dalit, a group that belongs at the bottom of India’s caste system. Many of his followers are also from lower castes and Dalits.
According to a police report, chaos erupted when Bhole Baba got off the stage and left the tent after the prayer meeting to head toward his car. Many people rushed out of the tent towards the car, trampling others in the process. The people rushed to touch the feet or the ground Bhole Baba had walked on. Trampling and suffocating to death killed many people.
121 Killed In The Hathras Tragedy
Sandip Kumar Singh Lodhi, Uttar Pradesh’s Education Minister, confirmed that 121 people had been killed. Uttar Pradesh (UP) Police Chief Prashant Kumar said among those dead were 112 women. UP chief secretary Manoj Kumar said on social media that seven children have lost their lives so far in the Hathras stampede.