RAMNAGAR, India (AP) — Orange rising from the flames illuminated the twilight scene. Savitri Devi, 50, had just been cremated.
Devi was among more than 120 people who died in a stampede last week at a religious festival in northern India, as the faithful advanced towards the preacher and chaos ensued among the participants.
O event it was only allowed to accommodate 80,000 people. It is unclear how many managed to enter the giant tent set up in a muddy field in a village in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh state, but it was reported that the number was about three times the number allowed.
“It was a question of destiny. What does Baba have to do with this?” Vir Pal Singh said about the demise of his wife Devi. Singh volunteered at the religious meeting. The couple had been followers of the Hindu guru, known locally as Bhole Baba, for more than 10 years.
It was not clear what caused the stampede. The chief minister of the state, Yogi Adityanathtold reporters that a crowd rushed toward the preacher to touch him as he came down from the stage, and volunteers scrambled to intervene.
An initial police report suggested that thousands of people crowded at the exits and many slipped on the muddy ground, causing them to fall and be crushed. Most of the dead were women.
The chaos appeared to continue outside the tent as people rushed toward the preacher as he left in a vehicle. His security guards pushed the crowd back, causing more people to fall, authorities said.
Devi’s daughters Bharti and Sonam were inconsolable. “We are orphans now. Mom left us. Who will take care of us? they lamented. The village women held them and cried together.
“My parents believed that Babaji (the preacher) would ease all our burdens,” said Ajay Kumar. Kumar, who graduated, said he also went to Baba’s religious gatherings because it had become a family tradition.
Deadly stampedes are relatively common at Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas with poor infrastructure and few security measures.
The family will immerse the ashes in the Ganges River, a Hindu belief that the deceased will achieve salvation through this act.
When asked if he would volunteer at Baba’s religious events in the future, Singh said, “I will decide when the time comes.”
