Yogi govt hiding Maha Kumbh stampede death toll: Akhilesh

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Friday said the yogi government is hiding the death toll of the Maha Kumbh stampede. He also asked the Uttar Pradesh government to provide medical care, food and clothes to devotees affected at the Maha Kumbh.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister's remark comes as at least 30 people were killed and 60 injured in a pre-dawn stampede at the Sangam area of the Maha Kumbh early Wednesday as millions of pilgrims jostled for space to take a holy dip on the occasion of one of the most auspicious days of 'Mauni Amavasya'.

Giving suggestions to the state government regarding the arrangements at the Maha Kumbh, Yadav in a post on X said, "Appeal should be made to open dhabas at various places day and night for food and water and organize bhandaras." "Arrangements should be made to transport medical and paramedical staff from across the state to the people trapped in remote areas through two-wheelers of volunteers," he added in the same post.

Yadav said, "Supply of petrol and diesel should be ensured to the vehicles trapped for miles around the Maha Kumbh and across the state. Medicine shops should be allowed to remain open day and night." The former chief minister demanded that "people should be given clothes and blankets".

"Where thousands of crores of rupees are being spent on publicity and to suppress the news of the accident, why is the government shying away from spending a few crores for the victims?" he asked.