At least six devotees were killed and dozens injured in a stampede in Tirupati on Wednesday night. Hundreds of devotees were jostling for tickets for Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanam at the Lord Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala Hills. PM Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi have also expressed condolences.
Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) Chairman BR Naidu said one body has been identified. “A DSP opened the gate… and immediately everyone started moving forward, leading to a stampede and reports are coming that six people died,” Naidu told a local news channel.
Prime Minister Modi expressed grief over the accident. The Prime Minister was quoted by the PMO as saying, “Saddened by the stampede in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. My thoughts are with those who have lost their loved ones. I pray that the injured people get well soon. Andhra The state government is providing all possible assistance to the affected people.”
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the stampede incident at Tirupati temple in Andhra Pradesh is extremely sad and urged Congress workers to provide all possible help in this difficult time. “The tragic stampede in Tirupati is extremely saddening. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. I wish speedy recovery to all the injured,” Gandhi said in a post on Twitter.
“I urge Congress leaders and workers to provide all possible assistance in these difficult times,” he said.
Hundreds of devotees from across the country came for the 10-day Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanam starting from January 10.
“I am deeply saddened by the death of some devotees in the stampede while on their way to Vaikuntha Dwara Darshanam near Vishnu Nivasam in Tirupati,” Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu said in a post on ‘X’.
According to the TTD chairman, Naidu held a teleconference to express his dissatisfaction over the temple staff and said such an incident was unfortunate. He said that there is a suspicion that this happened because of the (temple) administration. He said that the Chief Minister is coming to Tirupati on Thursday to console the injured.
He said, “The Chief Minister directed us that such incidents should not happen again. Taking this as a lesson, it is the responsibility of all of us to prevent such incidents in future.”
He said that the Chief Minister will announce the ex-gratia amount on Thursday.
Terming the stampede as unfortunate, TTD board member Bhanu Prakash apologized to the devotees of Srivari (Lord Venkateswara Swamy) for the incident.
He said there were some lapses and strict action would be taken, but the lives lost could not be brought back. The video of policemen giving CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) to some women devotees and the injured being taken in an ambulance went viral.
