Hathras Stampede Case: 6 Arrested, Rs 1 Lakh Reward Announced For Chief Sevadar

Pic: ANI

The Uttar Pradesh police announced on Thursday that they had arrested six'sevadars', including two women, in connection with the Hathras stampede, which killed 121 people. The only accused named in the FIR is still at large, but preacher Surajpal alias Narayan Sakar Hari alias Bhole Baba will be questioned as needed during the investigation, according to a senior officer.

"All six people arrested were sevadars (volunteers) at the'satsang,'" Inspector General of Police (Aligarh Range), Shalabh Mathur, told reporters. "A reward of Rs 1 lakh will be announced soon and non-bailable warrant (NBW) will also be issued against key accused Devprakash Madhukar," Mathura tweeted.

The preacher Surajpal was not named as an accused in the FIR filed at the local Sikandra Rau police station on Tuesday following the stampede in Phulrai village, which killed 121 people.

Meanwhile, the bodies of all Hathras stampede victims have been identified and returned to their families, District Magistrate Ashish Kumar announced here on Thursday. The stampede at preacher Baba Bhole's satsang in Hathras on Tuesday killed 121 people, most of whom were women, and injured 31 others. 

 Officials reported that 21 bodies were taken to Agra, 28 to Etah, 34 to Hathras, and 38 to Aligarh following the stampede. "All the bodies have been identified and handed over (to their respective families)," Kumar told PTI on Thursday. He stated that of the three bodies that remained unidentified until Wednesday, two were identified late at night and one through a video call on Thursday morning.

"The last body was identified by the family via video call. "They are on their way to Aligarh Hospital (to retrieve the body)," the district magistrate added. Kumar, a 2015-batch IAS officer who took over as Hathras DM just a week before the stampede, said there are no reports of missing people right now.

The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday appointed a three-member judicial commission led by a retired high court judge to investigate the Hathras tragedy, as well as the possibility of a "conspiracy" behind the stampede. The panel will submit its findings in two months.

The police have filed a FIR against the organisers of the'satsang' near Phulhari village in Hathras, accusing them of packing 2.5 lakh people into the venue when only 80,000 had been granted permission.

The accused in the FIR filed at the Sikandra Rau police station late on Tuesday are "Mukhya sevadar" Devprakash Madhukar and other organisers. The preacher, known as Jagat Guru Saakar Vishwahari Bhole Baba, does not appear on the list.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who visited Hathras on Wednesday and met with the injured, was asked why the preacher was not named in the FIR as an accused. He had stated, "Prima facie, a case has been filed against those who requested permission for the event. Whoever is responsible for this will fall under its jurisdiction."