Prayagraj, Uttar Pradesh, is home to the Maha Kumbh Mela and is regarded as one of the world’s largest religious gatherings. Millions of Hindu pilgrims gather at the holy confluence of the Yamuna, Ganges, and fabled Saraswati rivers in order to take a holy bath. Tragic events overshadowed the celebration on January 29, 2025, when a rush at that early hour of the morning killed at least 30 persons and injured over 60 more.
Justification for the Khumb Stampede PIL File
• The rush happened on January 29, 2025, at between 1 and 2 a.m., as tens of millions of worshippers watched the ritual dip and offered prayers on Mauni Amavasya, which is widely regarded as the festival’s most auspicious day.
• According to witnesses, several individuals caused a disturbance during the ascetic holy dip by attempting to scale the barricades put in place to control the gathering.
• Congestion, suffocation, and a tremendous push from behind caused several individuals to fall and others to rush to escape. Others passed away from heart attacks, while others had fractures and bone fractures.
rulings from the Supreme Court regarding the Mahakumbh Stampede
• According to the Supreme Court’s ruling, the court denied jurisdiction on a public interest lawsuit (PIL) on Monday that sought guidelines to protect devotees attending the Kumbh Mela, where a pre-dawn stampede in Prayagraj claimed at least 30 lives and injured 60 more.
• The Supreme Court, which is made up of Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar, noted the state of Uttar Pradesh’s argument that the petition should not be considered by the highest court because a plea on the same matter had already been filed before the Allahabad High Court.
• The top court referred to the incident as regrettable and requested that petitioner lawyer Vishal Tiwari reschedule the case to the Allahabad High Court.
• This is a regrettable occurrence. However, the bench requested that Tiwari (the petitioner) appear before the Allahabad High Court.
• Senior attorney Mukul Rohatgi, who was arguing on behalf of the state of Uttar Pradesh in the case, noted that the investigation was started following this incident in his submission to the Supreme Court.
• On January 30, one day following the Prayagraj stampede, the PIL was submitted to the highest court.
• One of the most auspicious days in the Hindu calendar, Mauni Amavasya, was the day of the incident.
• A day later, Tiwari filed a petition under Article 32 of the Constitution, asking for instructions to prevent stampede situations and to guarantee the fundamental rights to equality and life under Article 21.
The judiciary’s role
• The Supreme Court’s choices to reroute the PIL to the Allahabad High Court serve as an example of how the court handles these kinds of situations. It emphasized the importance of the Board of Inquiry and the High Court’s elevated function, so highlighting the judiciary’s precedence and the need for local judicial interventions.
• This action shows that the judiciary recognized contextualized and targeted remedies to the intricate and massive issues that come up during significant occasions like the Kumbh Mela.
As a result, the disastrous stampede at the Maha Kumbh Mela in 2025 acts as a soul printer on the difficulties encountered when managing sizable religious gatherings. The government, event planners, the public, and other stakeholders must work together to implement efficient safety procedures, even though the judiciary has started procedures to look at the occurrence and suggest protections. We can only avoid such catastrophe and give devotees the impression that they can freely attend auspicious events by working together.
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