The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the appointment of a five-member expert committee, supervised by a retired top court judge, to investigate the Hathras stampede incident. Over 100 people lost their lives in the tragic incident on July 2.
Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud, heading the bench, acknowledged the gravity of the incident but stated that the High Court is equipped to handle the case effectively. He advised the petitioner, advocate Vishal Tiwari, to approach the High Court with the plea.
“Everything does not necessarily come under Article 32 of the Constitution to be heard by the Supreme Court. You can approach the High Court, which is a robust forum. Of course, this incident is alarming,” remarked the bench.
The PIL had sought directions for the committee to formulate guidelines and safety measures to prevent such tragedies during large public gatherings. It also urged the Supreme Court to direct the State of Uttar Pradesh to submit a status report on the incident and take legal action against those responsible for negligence.
Additionally, the petition called for directives to all state governments to issue guidelines to prevent stampedes or similar incidents during religious or other mass gatherings.
The Hathras stampede occurred during a ‘satsang’ organized by self-styled godman Bhole Baba, also known as Narayan Saakar Hari, attracting a crowd of over two lakh devotees despite permission being granted for only 80,000 attendees.
The advocate cited previous stampede incidents, including the Kumbh Mela in 1954, Mecca Masjid in 2007, Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in 2022, Dussehra in Patna in 2014, and Sabarimala in Idukki, highlighting lapses in responsibility and negligence by government authorities.
“The incident underscores serious lapses in responsibility, negligence, and failure in duty of care towards the public by government authorities. Over the past decade, such incidents could have been avoided with proper management and maintenance,” the plea stated.