Retired High Court Justice Satyanarayana Murthy will head the commission of inquiry, which has been directed to submit its findings within six months.
Published Jan 23, 2025 | 12:05 AM ⚊ Updated Jan 23, 2025 | 12:05 AM
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu & Retired High Court Justice Satyanarayana Murthy
The Andhra Pradesh government on Wednesday, 22 January ordered a judicial inquiry into the deadly stampede that claimed six lives earlier this month near the Tirupati Lord Venkateswara Swamy Temple in Tirumala.
Retired High Court Justice Satyanarayana Murthy will head the commission of inquiry, which has been directed to submit its findings within six months, according to an order issued by Chief Secretary K Vijayanand.
Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who visited Tirupati in the aftermath of the tragedy, had earlier promised a judicial inquiry into the incident.
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The stampede occurred on 7 January, around 9 pm at the MGM School centre, in Tirumala where devotees had gathered to collect tokens for the Vaikuntha Ekadashi festivities. Though distribution was scheduled to begin the next morning, thousands of devotees, including those from neighbouring states, had begun queuing from a day earlier.
According to police, the stampede occurred when security personnel opened a gate to help a reportedly ill person, leading others to mistakenly believe token distribution had commenced. Six devotees lost their lives in the stampede, with several others sustaining injuries during what was meant to be a sacred occasion at the temple town.
The incident sparked widespread public outrage, with many blaming inadequate crowd management measures and alleged negligence by government authorities for the deadly tragedy that rocked one of India’s most visited pilgrimage sites.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
