Mahakumbh stampede: ‘Six of us came here, now we are five’: Heartbreaking accounts of next of kin
While consoling his sobbing father and two children as they waited at the Central Hospital, Jai Prakash recalled, “My mother fell as someone pushed from behind. I managed to pull my family to safety, but by the time I could search for my mother, she had already been crushed by the crowd. Six of us came here. Now we are five.”
Jai Prakash Soni’s voice quivered as he recounted the heartbreaking loss of his mother, Sheela, in the stampede that struck Sangam Ghat in Prayagraj on Wednesday morning. The tragedy unfolded in the early hours when a crowd of devotees was caught in a panic, leading to chaos and loss of life. Jai Prakash, who had managed to rescue his elderly father, wife, and two children, could not save his mother, who was trampled in the crush.
While consoling his sobbing father and two children as they waited at the Central Hospital, he recalled, “My mother fell as someone pushed from behind. I managed to pull my family to safety, but by the time I could search for my mother, she had already been crushed by the crowd. Six of us came here. Now we are five.”
Jai Prakash, overwhelmed with grief, expressed his frustration with the authorities, suggesting that the lack of crowd control contributed to the tragic incident.
A woman who lost her sister accused police and Prayagraj administration in their inability in averting the situation from taking an ugly turn. “The police did nothing. Instead all cops were engaged in blocking the passage and forcing devotees to walk an extra mile,” she alleged.
Among the victims was Nankun, from Gonda district, who was crushed by the stampede. His son Rahul recounted the tragedy, stating, “We had come to Prayagraj for the Mauni Amavasya bath. My father fell during the stampede, and within moments, thousands of people trampled him. He was declared dead at the hospital.” Rahul, heartbroken, appealed to the authorities to assist in bringing his father’s body back home.
Two women from Ballia district, who were also at the Sangam, lost their lives in the stampede, while others sustained injuries. Villagers reported that Sanjay Singh and Meera Singh’s husband, Baljeet Singh, were injured in the chaos. Another woman from Ballia also lost her husband in the stampede, further adding to the tragedy.
