Stampede exposes govt's incompetence: Naveen Patnaik
Puri: TheBJD president, Naveen Patnaik, on Sunday claimed that the stampede near Gundicha temple in Puri exposed the State government's glaring incompetence in ensuring a peaceful Rath Yatra for devotees. 'I extend my heartfelt condolences to the families of the three devotees who have lost their lives in the tragic stampede at Saradhabali, #Puri and I pray to Mahaprabhu Jagannatha for the swift recovery of the devotees injured in this devastating incident,' Patnaik said in a post on X.
'Today's stampede, occurring just a day after the abysmal failure of crowd management during the #RathYatra that left hundreds injured, exposes the government's glaring incompetence in ensuring a peaceful festival for devotees,' the Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly said.
'Eyewitnesses report that the initial response t
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The Hindu
an hour ago
- The Hindu
‘Break their legs and take reward': Odisha IPS officer's instruction during Congress protests over Puri stampede sparks row
An IPS officer of the Odisha cadre has allegedly instructed police personnel to "break legs" of some Congress workers and assured them of "rewards" for their action, prompting the opposition party in the state to condemn such a remark. The controversy erupted after a purported video, in which Bhubaneswar Additional Police Commissioner Narasingha Bhol was seen instructing police personnel to "break their legs and take reward from me" during a Congress workers' protest, went viral. Also Read | Puri stampede: Negligence, mismanagement that led to temple stampede inexcusable, says Kharge PTI could not verify the authenticity of the video independently. His alleged instruction came during a protest rally by Congress activists on Sunday (June 29, 2025) night over the Puri stampede that left three people dead. EDITORIAL | Sheer negligence: On the Puri stampede The Congress activists were holding a demonstration before the Chief Minister's residence, alleging that there were lapses in crowd management, which led to the stampede incident. In the viral video, Mr. Bhol was seen instructing the police personnel guarding barbed fencing near the CM's residence not to allow anyone to breach the barricade. "कोई बैरिकेडिंग तक आए तो टांग तोड़ देना" ये है ओडिशा की डबल इंजन सरकार के अंतर्गत आने वाले भुवनेश्वर ACP नरसिंह भोल जो पुलिसकर्मियों को कांग्रेस पार्टी के कार्यकर्ताओं की टांग तोड़ने का आदेश दे रहे है। ACP साहब, सरकार बदलते देर नही लगती, टांगे संभाल के रखियेगा.. — Srinivas BV (@srinivasiyc) June 30, 2025 IS THIS DEMOCRACY?@IYCOdisha went to gherao the CM's residence, demanding accountability for the chaos and mismanagement during the recent Puri Rath Yatra incident. But instead of answers, @odisha_police squads, acting like government goons, tried to crush the voice of youth.… — Manas choudhury (@ManasCOfficial) June 29, 2025 Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das said, 'This is highly condemnable. This shows the BJP government's attitude towards protesters. They (BJP) are criticising the emergency even after 50 years, but now a senior officer is instructing police personnel to break the legs of protesters. Is this a democracy?' Mr. Das also accused Mr. Bhol of instigating Congress activists earlier during a rally in Bhubaneswar. As his remarks stirred controversy, Mr. Bhol said that he urged the police personnel to perform their duties properly. Also Read | Former Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik takes swipe at BJP government over delay in Rath Yatra rituals "I was briefing the personnel to take action against protesters if they take the law into their hands, and resort to violence and unlawful activities," Mr. Bhol said. Youth Congress leader Yashir Nawaz said that they were holding a peaceful demonstration, demanding action against those responsible for the Puri stampede. Also Read | Puri stampede: Congress demands resignation of Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi "The Congress was also demanding the resignation of the chief minister and the law minister. But, Bhol's instruction to the police personnel is anti-democratic and highly condemnable," he said. Three people were killed and around 50 others injured in the stampede during the Rath Yatra festivities in Puri on Sunday (June 29, 2025).
Hans India
an hour ago
- Hans India
Odisha BJP chief poll put on hold
Bhubaneswar: Hours after initiating a process for the election of its Odisha unit chief, the BJP on Sunday put it on hold in view of a stampede during the Rath Yatra festivities in Puri. Three persons, including two women, were killed and over 50 others injured in the stampede near Shree Gundicha temple early on Sunday. Balasore MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi, who has been appointed as the State returning officer for the party's organisational poll, said that the election for both State president and national council members from Odisha has been 'put on hold'. An unfortunate incident took place in Puri, and three devotees lost their lives, and many others are undergoing treatment, Sarangi said. 'Such a tragic incident has disturbed all of us. We express our deepest condolences to the families of the deceased devotees,' he said. 'In view of the stampede, the elections of the State president and national council members from Odisha, which were scheduled to be held on July 1, have been put on hold,' he said. Information about the election will be shared later, said Sarangi.
Hans India
2 hours ago
- Hans India
Admin on alert for smooth conduct of Rath Yatra rituals
Puri: A day after Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi issued an apology to the devotees of Lord Jagannath for the 'unpardonable' negligence leading to the death of three persons in a stampede, the entire State administration was gearing up to ensure smooth conduct of the remaining rituals of Rath Yatra. The stampede took place near Shree Gundicha temple on Sunday during a ceremony related to the ongoing Rath Yatra festivities. The Gundicha temple is considered the aunt's place of the deities, where they stay for a few days during the annual festival. The Chief Minister's advisor and former DGP Prakash Mishra rushed to Puri and held discussions with various stakeholders to ensure a smooth conduct of the remaining rituals of Rath Yatra. Mishra was appointed as the advisor to the Chief Minister in January this year. Apart from serving as the DGP of Odisha, he has worked as the Director General of CRPF and NDRF. 'Now, we have to see how the remaining Rath Yatra rituals are carried out properly,' Mishra told reporters. Stating that the government has engaged all the 'experienced hands' after the stampede, Mishra pointed out that ADG Soumendra Priyadarshi has been in charge of overall police arrangements and he is an experienced person to handle such events. The new Puri Collector Chanchal Rana and new SP Pinak Mishra too have good knowledge about Puri temple affairs, he said. The first leg of the Rath Yatra - travelling of the deities from the Jagannath temple to the Gundicha temple - was complete. Several other rituals of the festival will be conducted in the next few days. The administration anticipates a congregation of lakhs of devotees during rituals such as 'Sandhya Darshan' (July 4), 'Bahuda Yatra' or return car festival (July 5), 'Suna Besha' (July 6) and 'Niladri Bije' (July 8). 'We see a major challenge in the smooth conduct of the return car festival on July 5 when the three chariots will be pulled back to the main temple. Another event is on July 6 when the trinity will adorn Suna Besha (golden attire) on July 6. We anticipate a bigger crowd of devotees to throng Puri to witness the Lord's Suna Besha,' a senior police official said. This apart, senior bureaucrat Aravind Agarwal is assigned the job of overall monitoring of the Rath Yatra affairs. He is a former collector of Puri and has good knowledge of the Rath Yatra management, Mishra said. The Chief Minister's advisor appealed to the devotees to maintain discipline as all would get the opportunity to have 'darshan' of the deities. Meanwhile, Development Commissioner Anu Garg said she has been given 30 days to inquire into the stampede. 'I will soon visit Puri and take stock of the situation,' Garg told reporters in Bhubaneswar. Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan said, 'The Sunday stampede incident was due to negligence on the part of some people. The government has already taken action and others will face action after the Deputy Commissioner submits report.' Harichandan said that the Deputy Commissioner's inquiry will focus mainly on three points - why the stampede took place, who are responsible and what more needs to be done to avoid such incidents in the future. The Puri Jagannath temple functions under the Law department of the State. Following the stampede, the Odisha government transferred the District Collector and the SP of Puri and also placed two senior police officers under suspension on the charge of dereliction of duty. While the rituals at Shree Gundicha temple went on smoothly on Monday, senior bureaucrat and former Puri Collector Aravind Agarwal held closed-door meetings with various stakeholders, including servitors of the 12th century shrine. He also discussed with people having sufficient experience in Rath Yatra management. Agarwal has sought the blessings of Lord Jagannath to smoothly carry out the responsibilities given to him by the State government, an official close to him said. According to temple records, so far 17 persons on five occasions died due to stampede since 2006. While the highest number of six persons were killed on July 4, 2008, during Rath Yatra, four others died on November 4, 2006, during the Kartik Purnima day. Similarly, two persons each died during Rath Yatra on July 21, 2012 and July 18, 2015. The latest stampede in Puri took place on June 29, 2025 where three persons have been killed. However, this is the first time that a stampede occurred outside Shree Gundicha temple a day after the pulling of chariots. The devotees on Monday had a smooth 'darshan' of deities after the police made special barricade arrangements near Shree Gundicha temple after the stampede incident, officials said.
