Thousands of worshipers lined up outside southern India’s most visited Hindu temple, leaving dozens injured.
At least six people were crushed to death and dozens injured when a crowd descended on one of the most visited Hindu religious sites in the town of Tirupati in southern India’s Andhra Pradesh state.
When the clashes broke out on Wednesday night, a large crowd had gathered to collect free entry tokens to visit the Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple in the town.
“The unfortunate incident… has claimed the lives of six devotees. We pray to God to grant peace to the departed souls,” said Prem Kumar Jain, spokesperson for the state’s ruling Telugu Desam Party. he told reporters.
Devotees from across India began arriving from early Wednesday morning for the 10-day festival at the temple, which begins on Friday.
State Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s office said authorities had been setting up counters to distribute free tokens to visit the nearly 2,000-year-old temple since Thursday, but crowds swarmed. , it is said that they were swarmed.
In a post on social media platform X, Mr Naidu said the death “deeply saddened me”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the bereaved family. “Our thoughts are with those who have lost loved ones,” his office told X.
Deaths frequently occur at places of worship in India due to poor crowd management and safety lapses during major religious events.
Up to 121 people were killed in the town of Hathras in July last year. in northern Uttar Pradesh During a Hindu religious gathering.
In 2016, a banned fireworks display celebrating the Hindu New Year caused a massive explosion at a temple in the southern state of Kerala, killing another 112 people.
Wednesday’s incident occurred just days before the start of the Kumbh Mela, a six-week Hindu festival of prayers and sacred bathing that is expected to be the largest religious gathering in history. Organizers say up to 400 million pilgrims are expected to take part.
