Maha Kumbh has turned into a ‘Mrityu Kumbh’: Mamata
Times of India | 19 February 2025
12 Kolkata: CM Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday accused the Uttar Pradesh administration of turning Maha Kumbh into a "Mrityu Kumbh", claiming that the Jan 29 stampede death toll was much higher than the official figure. Alleging mismanagement at Maha Kumbh, she said there was lack of planning prior to organising such a big event.
"Maha Kumbh has turned into a Mrityu Kumbh now… A total of 30 deaths were reported. Is this correct? The real figure is much more than that, it could be in thousands. Bodies were thrown in the river," said Banerjee.
Accusing the Yogi Adityanath govt for creating hype over Maha Kumbh without adequate planning, the CM said: "How can you create such hype without prior planning? There were fresh incidents of fire at the mela. I cannot support those who create hype over bodies."
Speaking in the state assembly, Banerjee said people were treating differently based on their wealth. "There are camps worth lakhs of rupees for VIPs. They have a different location for bathing. The poor and common men have to spend hours standing in the queue. They are charging Rs 2,000 if someone sits on a mattress," she said.
Referring to the pre-dawn crowd rush on Jan 29, Banerjee said there was always the possibility of a stampede-like situation in an event like this. "One needs to have a proper plan before the event. There was no planning even on the day Kumbh Mela started. We don't want to do politics over an incident. But questions definitely arise over the steps taken after the stampede," she said.
The CM alleged that there was an effort to earn money using religious festivals.
Banerjee criticised incidents due to overcrowding in trains. She alleged that there was no assessment to measure the capacity before allowing people to board trains.
Earlier, Trinamool was critical of the railway ministry following the death of 18 people in a stampede at New Delhi station on Feb 15.
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