Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 4: Amidst the sobs and wailing of the near and dear ones of the victims of the Hathras stampede, the Uttar Pradesh police have arrested six persons, all “sevadars” of the police constable-turned-religious preacher Suarj Pal Singh alias “Bhole Baba,” and is looking for the main accused Ved Prakash Madhukar.
The permission for the religious congregation that turned into a veritable death-trap for 121 victims, mostly women and children, was taken in the name of Madhukar described by the police as the “mukhya sevadar” (principal volunteer) of the preacher.
The police have declared a reward of Rs one lakh to anyone who can give information on the whereabouts of Madhukar against whom a non-bailable arrest warrant has also been issued, the Inspector General of police (Aligarh Range), Shalabh Mathur said on Thursday.
Madhukar and other organisers have been named as the accused in the FIR filed at the Sikandra Rao police station. The preacher, who is called Jagat Guru Saakar Vishwahari Bhole Baba, is not on the list.
Officials initially blamed a dust storm for sparking panic, while police later said the stampede began when “followers started to collect dust” (charan raj) from where the preacher had had passed on the ground. When the stampede happened, most of the sevadars fled and stopped people from making videos.
In a bid to control the crowd, the volunteers and others in charge of security from Pal’s organisation began pushing people back. Several devotees fell around an embankment and were crushed by the crowd. Amid the chaos, other attendees began running, triggering a stampede.
Issuing a brief statement on Wednesday after maintaining silence since the stampede, Pal expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and said he will take legal action against “anti-social elements” that were allegedly behind the tragedy.
Late on July 2, the police filed an FIR against the organisers of the satsang accusing them of cramming 2.5 lakh people into the venue when they had obtained permission for only 80,000.
Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath, who visited Hathras on Wednesday and met the injured, was asked why the preacher was not named in the FIR as an accused. “Prima facie, the case has been filed against those who applied for permission for the event. Whoever is responsible for this will come under its purview,” he said.
The state government has also formed a three-member judicial commission headed by a retired high court judge to probe the tragedy, also looking into the possibility that a “conspiracy” was behind the stampede. The panel will submit its report in two months.
The self-styled godman, in his early 60s, has not been seen in public since the incident. He issued a statement on Wednesday declaring he will take legal action against “anti-social elements” that allegedly engineered the horrific chaos.
The cop clarified that the ‘godman’ has not been questioned yet. “We will make arrests based on what the investigation reveals… We will question the baba if necessary, it is too early to say or comment whether he has a role. He has not been named in the FIR, which has held the organisers responsible. The permission was taken by the organising committee and members of the panel have been arrested,” the cop further said.
Pressed on the issue at a press conference Mr Mathur said the investigation has just begun and more arrests would be made based on the facts that emerge. He also clarified that the ‘godman’ has not been questioned yet.
Not ruling out taking Bhole Baba into custody, the officer said, “We will make arrests based on what the investigation reveals… We will question the baba if necessary, it is too early to say or comment whether he has a role. He has not been named in the FIR, which has held the organisers responsible. The permission was taken by the organising committee and members of the panel have been arrested.”
He said teams have been formed to trace him Madhukar. “If the role of other people is revealed during Madhukar’s questioning, we will take action accordingly,” Mr Mathur said.
Asked about the previous cases against the ‘godman’, who has allegedly also been accused of sexual assault, the officer said that, from what they know so far, Pal was a head constable with the UP police and had taken VRS (voluntary retirement from service) in 2000, when he was posted in Agra.
“Soon after, an FIR was registered against him in Agra’s Shahganj police station and he was later acquitted. We are finding out if he has any more cases against him and we are taking the help of police in various states for this.
The Hathras district magistrate Ashish Kumar said the bodies of all victims of the stampede have been identified and handed over to their families. “The last body was identified by the family over a video call. They are on their way to Aligarh hospital (to get the body),” the district magistrate added.
Meanwhile, senior Congress leader K.C. Venugopal said in New Delhi that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi would be visiting Hathras on Friday. Terming the tragedy as an “unfortunate incident,” the Congress general secretary (Organisation) said Mr Gandhi, would interact with the affected people during his visit.
