Seven Devotees Killed in Bihar Temple Stampede, Allegedly Triggered by Lathi-Charge

The devotees had assembled at the temple for an annual consecration ceremony conducted each year during the sacred month of Shravan.

A tragic incident occurred in Bihar's Jehanabad district last night, where seven devotees, including three women, lost their lives in a stampede at the Baba Sidheshwar Nath temple on Baravar hills. The stampede, which left at least 35 others injured, reportedly ensued after force was allegedly used to control the crowd. Despite the claims, local authorities have denied any negligence.

Diwakar Kumar Vishwakarma, the Town Inspector of Jehanabad, confirmed that seven bodies were brought to the Jehanabad Post-mortem House. The devotees had gathered for an annual consecration event, a tradition during the sacred month of Shravan. Heart-wrenching scenes from the area showed grieving families and the injured being attended to at Makhdumpur and Sadar hospitals.

Relatives of the victims and witnesses at the temple attributed the stampede to inadequate crowd control measures by the administration. They alleged that some NCC (National Cadet Corps) volunteers managing the crowd used "lathis" on the devotees, triggering the chaos. A devotee who was present at the scene claimed that a lathi charge was initiated following a quarrel involving a flower seller, further alleging that no administrative officials were present at the time.

Local residents fear the death toll may rise. However, Vikash Kumar, the sub-divisional officer (SDO) of Jehanabad, refuted the allegations that NCC volunteers resorted to lathi-charging. He stated that all necessary precautions, including deploying NCC volunteers, civil deputations, and medical teams, were in place. He assured that more information would be provided following the post-mortem.

District Magistrate Alankrita Pandey informed PTI that the stampede was the result of a disagreement among kanwariyas, which escalated into a scuffle.