New Delhi [India], June 12 (HBTV): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government of 'suppressing the truth' about the deaths during the Maha Kumbh stampede earlier this year. He alleged that, similar to the COVID-19 pandemic, the deaths of the poor were excluded from official records.

In a post on X, Gandhi said, 'BBC report reveals that figures of deaths in Kumbh Mela stampede were hidden. Like in COVID, the bodies of the poor were erased from the statistics. Like after every major railway accident the truth is suppressed. This is the BJP model – if there is no counting of the poor, then there is no responsibility either!'

As per reports, thirty people lost their lives during the stampede that occurred on Mauni Amavasya during the Maha Kumbh.

Following the incident, the Uttar Pradesh government announced financial assistance of INR 25 lakh for the families of the deceased and instituted a judicial inquiry into the matter.

Earlier in March, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha regarding the number of persons killed and injured during the Maha Kumbh stampede, stated that 'No such data is maintained centrally.'

Rai explained that 'Public Order' and 'Police' are State subjects under the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India. The organisation of religious congregations, crowd management, provision of amenities to devotees, and prevention of disasters during such events fall under state jurisdiction.

(ANI)