Rahul Gandhi Meets With Family Members of Hathras Stampede Victims

Hathras: Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Friday reached Hathras to meet the family members of those who lost their lives in the stampede during a religious gathering on July 2. 

He left for Hathras from Delhi by road on Friday morning and was accompanied by state Congress chief Ajay Rai, state Congress in-charge Avinash Pande, party spokesperson Supriya Shrinate and other office bearers.

Rahul Gandhi first made a stop at Aligarh where he was seen interacting with family members of the victims. Later, he reached Hathras and met the kin of the stampede victims from the district. The senior Congress leader landed in Pilakhna village in Aligarh around 7.15 am.

A total of 121 people, mostly women, died in the stampede at self-styled godman Baba Bhole's satsang in Hathras on Tuesday.

Rahul Demands ‘More Compensation’ For Victims

After meeting the bereaved families of the Hathras Stampede incident, Rahul Gandhi demanded more compensation for them, citing their poor conditions. 

“A lot of families have been affected and many people have died... I don't want to politicise this. There have been deficiencies in the system... I think they should get more compensation as these are very poor families. I request the CM of UP to provide compensation open-heartedly. They need it now, more compensation should be given as soon as possible.”  

He added that the family members of the stampede victims claimed that the police arrangement at the ‘Satsang’ site was not sufficient which led to the stampede. 

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each for the families of those who died and Rs 50,000 each for the injured in the Hathras stampede

The family members said that the police arrangement was not enough..."

Hathras Stampede: 6 ‘Sevadars’ Arrested

After 121 people lost their lives in the Hathras stampede, the Uttar Pradesh police on Thursday arrested 6 people, including the Satsang organiser. 

“Six people including four men and two women have been arrested in the incident. They all are members of the organising committee and worked as Sevadars”, said IG (Aligarh Range) Shalabh Mathur. 

A total of 121 people were killed, of which most were women and children, and 31 were injured in the stampede at the preacher Narayan Sakar Hari's aka Bhole Baba Satsang in Hathras on Tuesday. 

After the stampede, 21 bodies were taken to Agra, 28 to Etah, 34 were in Hathras and 38 in Aligarh, according to officials.  

The police have also announced a ₹1 lakh bounty on the arrest of the main accused Prakash Madhukar. "When the stampede occurred the six servitors who are now arrested had run away from the site. Rs 1 lakh reward is being announced on the arrest of the main accused Prakash Madhukar. Soon, a non-bailable warrant will be issued against him. We will also investigate if this incident occurred due to a conspiracy."