After a stampede near the Mansa Devi temple in Haridwar killed eight people on Sunday morning, an FIR has been registered against unknown persons for spreading rumours that an electrical wire had snapped and was posing a hazard, which is believed to have triggered a panic and led to the tragedy.
The FIR, registered on Sunday, is based on the statement of the in-charge of the Har Ki Pauri police outpost, SI Sanjeet Kandari, who recounted the incident after he received information from Head Constable Sandeep Kapoor, who was deployed on duty at the Mansa Devi temple. He said the crowd of devotees near the pedestrian stairway at the temple had become uncontrollable, creating a situation resembling a stampede.
Upon receiving this information, the complainant said that he set off and reached the stairway route to the Mansa Devi temple. “We immediately proceeded via a cable car to the site. About 20 to 25 metres from the entrance gate to the Mansa Devi stairway route at Charan Paduka, towards Ram Prasad Gali, we observed chaos at the location. Several people were lying injured and unconscious. On-duty officers were helping the injured and informed us that some of the injured had already been sent for treatment via cable cars,” the complaint said.
“When we asked locals and nearby devotees about the incident, they said that at around 8.40 am, a rumour was spread by an unknown person claiming that an electric current was passing through the area. Panicked by this, devotees started running, resulting in the stampede,” the complaint further said.
After completing the rescue operation at the site, the police team reached the District Hospital in Haridwar and were informed that 22 persons were injured and six persons had died. By Sunday night, the toll had risen to eight. The inquest proceedings for the deceased were conducted at the district hospital.
Pinning the blame on the “rumour”, the complaint said that the incident occurred on the stairway route to the Mansa Devi temple and was caused due to false information spread by unknown individuals among the crowd, claiming that an electrical wire had broken, which led to panic and a stampede. “It is necessary to file a case under appropriate sections against the unknown persons who spread this rumour,” the complaint said.
The FIR was registered under Sections 353(3), 125(A), 125(B), and 106 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) at Haridwar Kotwali police station.
