UP judicial panel gives 'clean chit' to Bhole Baba in Hathras stampede that killed 121, claims lawyer

Hathras (UP): A judicial commission has given a clean chit to spiritual preacher Narayan Sakar Hari, also known as Bhole Baba, in the Hathras stampede case which resulted in the deaths of 121 people during a gathering here on July 2 last year, his lawyer claimed on Friday.

A three-member judicial commission was set up by the state government, with justice (retired) Brijesh Kumar Shrivastav as its chairperson along with former IAS officer Hemant Rao and former IPS officer Bhavesh Kumar as members.

Surajpal, the real name of the preacher, was not mentioned as an accused in the FIR lodged by the local police following the deadly stampede in Sikandrarao's Fulrai village.

However, as part of the probe, he deposed before the judicial panel in Lucknow on October 10 last year.

In a video statement on Friday, the preacher's lawyer, A P Singh, said the three-member panel gave a clean chit to the preacher in the stampede case.

"This is a victory of religion and truth. I had submitted 1,100 affidavits from eyewitnesses and the judicial commission examined 500 witnesses. I thank the Uttar Pradesh government for this fair investigation," he said.

Singh added that the panel's report would be presented in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly where a mechanism for organising such events would be discussed.

He further alleged, "Some conspirators had planned to malign Bhole Baba and the UP government, but this report has exposed their agenda." The tragic incident occurred on July 2 when a stampede broke out after Bhole Baba's discourse, claiming 121 lives, mostly women and children, and injuring around 150 others.

Following the incident, 11 people, including the main event organiser, Dev Prakash Madhukar, were arrested. The government also suspended the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) and the local police station in-charge.

Government agencies, including police, had blamed the organisers for the mismanagement at the event, noting that the size of the crowd exceeded to over 2.50 lakh from the permitted 80,000.

In a press conference in Hathras, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had hinted at a possible conspiracy into the episode.