Tirupati stampede: Jagan Reddy blames Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu – ’neither fear nor devotion towards God’
Tirupati stampede: YSRCP leader and former chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy has blamed Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu, police and revenue officials for poor crowd management that led to the tragic stampede at Tirupati temple in which six devotees lost their lives.
YSRCP chief Jagan Mohan Reddy has blamed Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, police and revenue officials for the Tirupati stampede in which six people were killed and dozens injured.
"Entire police force was deployed for Chandrababu’s Kuppam tour for three days and there were no police personnel for crowd management, which led to the stampede,” alleged Reddy, the former Andhra chief minister, on January 9.
With cops were preoccupied with Naidu’s tour on January 6-8, ‘no force’ was available to handle the crowd, Reddy said, adding that this "shows that the chief minister has neither fear nor devotion towards God".
Six devotees died, and nearly 40 were injured in the stampede at Bairagi Patteda near MGM School in Tirupati on Wednesday night as hundreds of people jostled for tickets for Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam at the Lord Venkateswara Swamy Temple on the Tirumala Hills.
Devotees turned up in large numbers from across the country for the 10-day Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam commencing on January 10.
Chief Minister Naidu has ordered the suspension of Tirupati’s Deputy Superintendent of Police Ramana Kumar and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) SV Dairy Farm Director Harinatha Reddy. Tirupati’s SP L Subbarayudu, Joint Executive Officer M Goutami, and TTD’s Chief Vigilance and Security Officer (CVSO) S Sreedhar have been transferred, according to reports.
The chief minister has also ordered a judicial probe into the stampede, caused when the gates of Padmavathi Park, where tickets for the upcoming Vaikunta Ekadasi festival were being distributed, were opened.
Increase the ex-gratia to ₹50 lakh
Reddy consoled the injured at a local hospital and demanded the TDP government extend an ex–gratia of ₹50 lakh each for the kin of the deceased and ₹5 lakh each for the injured devotees. Naidu has announced an ex-gratia of ₹25 lakh for the families of the victim who died in the stampede.
"During our term (2019–2024) we had conducted such events with care and passion, but this year caution was thrown to the winds... The devotees were kept in parks and other places without even giving them food or water," he alleged.
Reddy asserted that the FIR over the stampede was booked under "ordinary" sections and claimed that the devotees had come from all the counters to complain about a similar situation and not just from Bairagi Patteda.
This shows that the chief minister has neither fear nor devotion towards God.
"He (Naidu) had earlier too done the same thing during Godavari Pushkarams in which 29 persons were killed in a stampede which was the result of his publicity craze,” said the YSRCP supremo, referring to the incident during the erstwhile TDP regime between 2014 and 2019.
(With PTI inputs)
Key Takeaways
- Leadership accountability is crucial during major events to ensure public safety.
- Proper crowd management and resource allocation can prevent tragic incidents.
- Political blame games often arise in the wake of public tragedies, reflecting deeper systemic issues.
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Business NewsNewsIndiaTirupati stampede: Jagan Reddy blames Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu – ’neither fear nor devotion towards God’
First Published:10 Jan 2025, 08:37 AM IST
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