Fire breaks out at Laxmi Narayan ‘Mahayajna’ in Ayodhya, triggers panic

Lucknow: A major fire broke out at a Laxmi Narayan ‘Mahayajna’ (a ritual by fire), organised by Uttar Pradesh minister Daya Shankar Singh, in Ayodhya on Saturday.

According to the reports, the fire—which burned for several hours— completely gutted the ‘yajna’ pandal. It took six fire tenders to extinguish the fire.

Sources said that hundreds of devotees were present at the pandal but all of them had left the venue before the fire spread.

Reports said that three persons sustained burn injuries in the incident and were admitted to the hospital.

It was not immediately ascertained what caused the fire and a probe is ongoing, sources said.

Eye witnesses said that the fire spread quickly owing to the strong winds.

The place where the ‘yajna’ was organised was less than a kilometre from the Ram Temple, reports said. More than 1200 ‘havan kunds’ were made for the ‘Mahayajna’ being held on the bank of the Saryu river.