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Hema Malini says Stampede in Maha Kumbh “Not a Big Incident”

Hema Malini says Stampede in Maha Kumbh “Not a Big Incident”

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Manas Dasgupta

NEW DELHI, Feb 4: Amidst persistent opposition demand from the government to reveal the actual death toll in the stampede in the Maha Kumbh Mela in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh insisting that the casualty was much higher than 30 deaths claimed by the government, the BJP MP and Bollywood actress Hema Malini making an insensitive remark claiming that the Kumbh stampede was “not a big incident.”

Days after her “very nice bath” at the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna and (mythical) Saraswati rivers in Prayagraj, Ms Malini said “… it was not a very big incident. I don’t know how big it was (but) it is being exaggerated,” she declared, also praising Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s administration for a “very well-managed” religious gathering. “Everything was done very well…” she continued, also seeming to excuse the stampede as ‘inevitable’ given “so many people are coming… very difficult to manage.”

On criticism by opposition leaders – who have accused the UP government of hiding the real number of deaths – she shrugged, “They will say what they want to… It is their job to say wrong things.” Hema Malini took her ‘holy dip’ last week, after which she declared she was “feeling great”, and said, “I have never had such an experience before… I am fortunate to take the holy dip.”

The comments invited a sharp jab from Tariq Anwar, the Congress MP from UP’s Katihar, who said the actor could “never know what it (the horrific crowding that led to the stampede) was really like.” “When she visited, she was given VIP treatment. Things at Maha Kumbh went downhill because the police and administration were both (looking) after VIPs. They did not bother about the arrangements and security for common people. If she says this is not a big issue… it is a mockery of the victims.”

The Samajwadi Party responded through MP Dharmendra Yadav, who also pointed out Hema Malini would have had VIP treatment for her visit to Prayagraj. “She is the ruling party leader and a big artist… it is possible she had special facilities (but) hundreds died and that is not hidden from anyone.” Thirty people were killed in a stampede after a restive crowd jostled for space and burst past barriers to take that ‘holy dip’, ‘amrit snaan‘. At least 60 were injured in the tragic event.

The stampede triggered furious pushback from opposition parties, particularly after the state government seemed to delay confirming fatalities; a post by Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to the families of those killed, well before the UP Chief Minister acknowledged deaths. In Parliament and out, the Samajwadi Party (SP) and other opposition parties have demanded a verified list of those who died in the stampede, arguing the BJP’s UP government is trying to hide the actual number.

Ex-Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav’s SP has been at the forefront of the opposition’s calls for justice for the victims (and their families) and holding the government to account. This morning too, speaking in Parliament, he demanded that “those hiding the truth be punished.”

Mr Yadav has repeatedly raised this issue inside and outside the House, even leading his MPs on a symbolic walk-out last week as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman began reading the Union Budget. Later that day he told reporters, “There is something more important now than a ‘budget’.”

The SP boss was joined in his fierce attacks by colleague Jaya Bachchan, who is also an actor-politician; Ms Bachchan on Monday ripped into the BJP and the state government, accusing them of dumping the bodies of those killed in the stampede into the Ganga River. “Where is the water most contaminated right now? It is in Kumbh. No one is giving any clarification on that. Bodies have been thrown in the river because of which water is contaminated,” she said.

The BJP took strong exception to her remarks, accusing Ms Bachchan of “hurting the sentiments of Hindus” and warning them that they “will have to face the repercussions”. The party also said Rs 1,600 crore had been spent for water management, including waste disposal, in this Kumbh period.

Speaking in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, Mr Yadav alleged that the government was hiding the number of deaths in the stampede and demanded strict action against those trying to cover up the “mismanagement” in organising the fair. Mr Yadav said the government claimed to organise digital Kumbh, but was hiding the digits of the dead.

The former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister demanded that the government call an all-party meeting to discuss the arrangements of the Kumbh and hand over disaster management and Lost and Found Centre to the Army. The SP leader also demanded disciplinary action against officers who have tried to cover up the “mismanagement” in the arrangements for the Kumbh. “The figures for the deaths in the Maha Kumbh accident, treatment of injured, availability of medicines, doctors, food, water, transport should be presented in Parliament,” he said.

Mr Yadav said when the stampede broke out, the government asked the seers to postpone the ‘shahi snan’, which is performed at the unique alignment of planets. “The government ordered seers to put off their ‘shahi snan’ and broke with the traditions of the ‘sanatan dharma’. When there was a hue and cry, the government ordered them to re-commence the ‘shahi snan’, forgetting that the holy bath has to be taken at a specific time or muhurat,” Mr Yadav said.

He claimed the government used JCB machines (earth movers) and tractor trollies to clear the bodies lying around after the stampede. “People came to earn blessings (punya), but had to leave with the bodies of near and dear ones. The miracle here was that the government found bodies but was refusing to accept the numbers,” Mr Yadav said.

The opposition members in the Rajya Sabha had also asked the government to come clean on the number of people who were killed and those missing in the stampede. When Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, while paying tributes to the stampede victims, said “thousands” had died on the fateful day, the Treasury benches created an uproar with Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar directing Mr Kharge to authenticate the numbers or withdraw the statement.

Amid protests by the Treasury benches, Mr Kharge said, “This is my estimate [and] if this is not right, you [the government] should tell what is the truth.” He said he was ready to be corrected. “I did not say ‘thousands’ to blame anyone. But how many people died, give that information at least. I will apologise if I am wrong. They should give figures… how many died, how many are missing,” he said.

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