Shiv Sena (UBT) spokesperson Sanjay Raut claimed that at least 120 people were killed in the New Delhi Railway Station stampede on Saturday night. The government is falsely claiming that only 18 lives were lost in the rush to board a train bound for Prayagraj where the Mahakumbh is underway.
"According to information I have, 120 to 150 people have died in the stampede. The government is hiding the figure," Lok Satta quoted Sanjay Raut as saying on Sunday.
The former MP claimed that New Delhi Railway Station was witnessing heavy rush for the last four days as devotees arrived in large numbers to go to Prayagraj. People from Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh were arrving in large numbers for the Kumbhmela. He also spoke about the incidents of vandalism at railway stations by angry passengers. "At various railway stations, passengers are seen breaking the windows of the train. People are breaking the doors and entering, the crowd has become so chaotic," the Lok Satta report said.
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Coming down heavily on the Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, Raut said several thousands have gone missing in Prayagraj after arriving to take the holy dip. Real figures of the Mahakumbh stampede were also hidden by the BJP, he alleged.
"Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was saying yesterday that 50 crore people came to the Kumbh Mela. But how many died? When will the figure be announced? How many people died in the stampede in Prayagraj? Seven thousand people have gone missing in the Kumbh Mela. Where have these seven thousand people gone? Either these people died in the stampede or have gone missing. The government is also trying to suppress the figure in the stampede in Delhi," he reportedly said.
The BJP is inviting people to go to the Mahakumbh as it is a party function. People are being misled by claiming that everything including trains, food and accommodation was made available. But the Yogi government have horribly failed in making the arrangements, Raut alleged.
Earlier, Congress has also levelled charges that the Railways and the Centre tried to downplay the tragedy. Delhi LG VK Saxena's social media activity post the tragedy also raised eyebrows. The first post in Saxena's X handle appeared around 11:45 pm on Saturday night. It read: "There has been an unfortunate and tragic incident of loss of lives and injuries due to disorder and stampede at New Delhi Railway Station. My deepest condolences to the families of victims of this tragedy."
However, 15 minutes later, Saxena edited the post, deleting the reference to death. "There has been an unfortunate incident at New Delhi Railway Station".
The Railways too allegedly tried to smother the news. There were reports that the CPRO Northern Railways' initial response was that the stampede news that it "was just a rumour". "There was no stampede (at New Delhi Railway Station. It is only a rumour. The Northern Railways was running two planned special trains (for Prayagraj)."
It later acknowledged the incident, stating "15 people have been injured in a stampede-like situation."
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge wrote on X, "The attempt by the Narendra Modi government to hide the truth in the case of deaths at New Delhi Railway Station is extremely shameful and condemnable."