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BJP MP and veteran actor Hema Malini has sparked controversy with her remarks on the tragic Mahakumbh stampede in Prayagraj, which claimed at least 30 lives and left over 60 injured. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Malini downplayed the incident, stating it was being “exaggerated.” Her comments have drawn severe backlash from opposition leaders and the families of the victims.
Hema Malini’s made a statement, “We went to Kumbh; we had a very nice bath. It is right that an incident took place, but it was not a very big incident. I don’t know how big it was. It is being exaggerated,” the BJP MP said, adding that managing such a massive gathering is difficult but was being handled efficiently by the Uttar Pradesh government.
#WATCH | Delhi: BJP MP Hema Malini says “…We went to Kumbh, we had a very nice bath. It is right that an incident took place, but it was not a very big incident. I don’t know how big it was. It is being exaggerated…It was very well-managed, and everything was done very… pic.twitter.com/qIuEZ045Um
— ANI (@ANI) February 4, 2025
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Malini also praised the Yogi Adityanath government for hosting a “well-organized” religious congregation. “Everything was done very well. The government had made all necessary arrangements,” she added.
Her comments, however, have been sharply criticized, especially by opposition leaders who have accused the government of negligence and mishandling crowd control at the religious event.
Senior Congress leader Tariq Anwar condemned Malini’s statement, arguing that she had no real understanding of the horrors experienced by the pilgrims. “When she visited, she was given VIP treatment. Things at Maha Kumbh went downhill because the police and administration were focused on VIPs. They neglected security and crowd management for common people. Calling this a small incident is an insult to those who lost their lives,” Anwar said.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav has also hurled sharp barbs at the BJP-led UP government, charging it with an attempt to hush up the real extent of the tragedy. “For the Mahakumbh tragedy, exemplary punitive action needs to be initiated against the accused. Those responsible for hiding the truth need to be punished. The double-engine government needs to explain why numbers were suppressed, hidden, and erased,” said Yadav in Parliament.
Log punye kamane aaye the, aur apno ke shav lekar gaye hai (People came to earn merit, but they left with the bodies of their loved ones),” he added, highlighting the emotional toll of the disaster.
Jaya Bachchan, actor-politician and the MP in Rajya Sabha of the Samajwadi Party, also shared her concurrence of opinions with this issue by claiming that some victims’ bodies were thrown in the Ganga River to underestimate the number of people dead. “Where is the water most contaminated right now? It is in Kumbh. No one is providing any clarification on that. Bodies have been thrown in the river, contaminating the water,” she said.
The UP government, however, outrightly denied all charges of negligence. The opposition parties were counterattacked by the BJP for politicizing a religious tragedy. “The UP government has spent over Rs 1,600 crore on water management, waste disposal, and crowd control. The opposition is merely trying to spread misinformation,” said BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi.
Union Minister Amit Shah defended Malini, saying, “She simply said that it is tough to manage a crowd of this size. The government is doing its best, and the opposition is playing politics over the deaths.”
On his part, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expressed condolences to the families who lost their dear ones. “Deeply saddened by the loss of lives in the tragic incident at Mahakumbh. My prayers are with the bereaved families,” he posted on social media. However, leaders of opposition criticized him saying his condolences were extended before the UP government accepted that people had lost their lives in the accident.
Opposition leaders, including Akhilesh Yadav, have demanded an independent probe into the stampede. “We need a verified list of those who died, along with transparency in the number of injured,” he said, adding that disaster management at the Kumbh should be handed over to the Army in the future.
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