Jagan Reddy blames Naidu, officials for Tirupati stampede

Vijayawada:Squarely blaming Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, the TTD, the police and revenue officials for the Tirupati stampede, YSR Congress President YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said on Thursday that the sanctity of the TTD has been violated under the present TD-led dispensation.

Speaking to the media after consoling the injured at the hospital in Tirupati, Jagan Reddy said that the entire police force was deployed for Naidu’s Kuppam tour for three days. Hence, there was no police for crowd management. This led to the stampede,” the former CM said.

Jagan Reddy said Chandrababu Naidu, TTD EO, AEO, TTD chairman, SP, and the district collector should jointly take the responsibility for the incident, in which six persons died and nearly 50 persons were injured.

An ex-gratia of `50 lakh should be paid to the kin of each deceased person and `5 lakh to the injured, he said.

Jagan Reddy said, “Every year, lakhs of devotees come to Tirupati on Vaikuntha Ekadasi as the Vaikuntha Dwaram would be opened. Arrangements should have been in place as has been the practice, but this time there was negligence and lack of manpower to control the crowd. This led to the incident, which shows how the alliance leaders and TTD top brass treat the devotees.”

“During our term, we had conducted such events with care and passion, but this year caution was thrown to the winds. Arrangements of Srirnagam should be followed to avoid such incidents but this government has shown no commitment to safeguard the sanctity of the TTD,” the former CM said.

Deploring the scenario in which the devotees were kept in parks and other places without giving them food or water, Jagan Reddy said no proper arrangements were made to handle the crowd and no queue system was followed due to the inadequate police strength there.

He alleged that the FIR was registered in connection with the stampede under ordinary sections. “The decorum and sanctity of TTD have been violated and Chandrababu Naidu, who spread lies about the Tirupati laddu, has the least respect for the holy place.”

“Though the officials claim that the incident took place only at the Bairagi Patteda (Matham), the injured people had come from all the darshan token counters.”

Jagan Reddy noted, “He (Naidu) had earlier too done the same thing -- during the Godavari Pushkarams -- in which 29 persons were killed in a stampede which was the result of his publicity craze. With police being away at Kuppam for Naidu’s tour on January 6, 7 and 8, there was no force to handle the crowds. This shows that the chief minister has neither fear nor devotion towards the Lord.”

The former CM added, “The ambulance reached very late to transport the victims to the hospitals. Some people went on their own to hospitals.”

“I learn that the official machinery tried to discharge patients as it came to know that I would be coming to console the victims. Some of them who refused to go away interacted with me. In fact, my way was blocked by the officials to delay my arrival to the hospital,” Jagan Reddy added.