SC refuses to entertain plea on stampede, calls incident unfortunate

Mahakumbh is the greatest religious fair now ongoing in Prayagraj that will create history in recording the Indian cultural calendar.The Supreme Court of India, not willing to entertain a PIL regarding action on authorities responsible for the stampede during the ongoing Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, merely described the occurrence as “unfortunate” while advising the petitioner to move his writ petition directly before the Allahabad High Court.It happened on 29 January 2025, during the second Shahi Snan at the Sangam, where millions of devotees had congregated to take a holy dip. The stampede resulted in the loss of 30 lives and injured over 60 people. The PIL filed in the Supreme Court sought directions to enhance safety measures for pilgrims, implement strict safety protocols, and take legal action against the negligent authorities.Swami Chidanand Saraswati, head of Parmarth Niketan Ashram, condoled the families who lost their members and cautioned that each one must follow the safety instructions. He appreciated the decision by Akhara Parishad to allot priority to devotees in the holy dip and stressed the vigil of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for the safety arrangements.The Uttar Pradesh government has provided heavy security at the Triveni Sangam, and police have paved the way for the akharas and saints for their Amrit Snan. As per the state government, 36.1 million devotees had taken the holy dip at Triveni by 10 am on January 29.This Maha Kumbh festival in the Hindu calendar is an event that draws millions of devotees from across the country. This festival occurs once every 12 years, and the one expected to happen this year in 2025 will attract over 100 million people. The recent incident has already raised a great concern regarding safety and security measures at the festival, and there have been pleas to the authorities to take appropriate action in advance to avoid any such incidents.In a similar incident, more than 100 people lost their lives in the stampede that took place during the Hathras religious gathering in July 2024. The Supreme Court refused to entertain a PIL seeking a probe into the incident and instead asked the petitioner to approach the High Court.⁴The incidence that occurred at the Maha Kumbh festival has revealed a dire need for upgraded safety measures and crowd control management in large congregations. The concerned authorities need to wake up now and think of ways to avoid such incidents happening again and ensure the safety and security of the devotees.True to life talked to Snigdha Vishnoi Sociology professor from Ambedkar University delhi, who expressed his condolences for the dead ones but he also pointed out the need of increased security and administrative measures that needs to be implemented to avoid such incidents and he also suggested that measures to control crowd should be in place since before hand as such big crowds are expected at huge cultural events and the incident is a failure of the administrative efficiency of on the part of government “.