Instead of whitewashing, it's govt's responsibility to take action: Priyanka on Hathras stampede

New Delhi: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra hit out at the BJP on Wednesday over a stampede in Hathras, saying such incidents keep happening but accountability is not fixed by the government, which instead is only interested in "whitewashing" these matters.

A stampede at a religious congregation in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday killed 121 people, most of them women, as devotees suffocated to death and bodies piled atop each other.

The stampede took place as the "satsang" ended. Some accounts said people slipped in the slush as they ran after the preacher's car, triggering the stampede.

In a post in Hindi on X, Gandhi said, "Three times more crowd than permitted, no administration on the spot, no crowd management arrangements, no way to escape from the scorching heat, no medical team, no ambulance after the incident, no one for help, no doctors and facilities in the hospital ... such a long list of negligence but no one is accountable." Who is responsible for the tragic incident that happened in Hathras, the Congress general secretary asked.

"Sometimes hundreds of people die due to a bridge collapse, sometimes due to train accidents, sometimes due to stampedes. Instead of whitewashing, it is the responsibility of the government to take action and prepare a plan to prevent such accidents," she said.

But accountability is not fixed and such accidents keep happening, Gandhi said, adding that this is a very sad situation.