Lalu Yadav attributes Patna stampede to administrative 'lapse'

Patna: RJD president Lalu Prasad said the stampede outside Gandhi Maidan, which left 33 dead, appears to be a result of administrative "lapse" and expressed dismay over the administration's inability to make foolproof arrangements despite several unpleasant incidents in the past at the grounds in the heart of the capital.

"Gandhi maidan stampede appears to be a matter of administrative lapse," Prasad wrote on micro-blogging website Twitter.

"Stern action shall be taken against officials found guilty...I am keeping a watch over the event," he said.

"From the beginning we have been demanding that height of the boundary wall of the Gandhi Maidan should be lowered and there should be more and more entry and exit points in the maidan," Prasad said.

The RJD is extending support to Jitan Ram Manjhi Government in Bihar.

Prasad said he was very sorry that he could not reach Patna due to health problem.

He repeated the helpline number 0612-2219810 released by the district administration for the relatives of the stampede victims.

Earlier known as the "Patna Lawns," Gandhi Maidan is a historic ground at Patna near the banks of the Ganga.

Several movements were launched on the Patna Lawns during the freedom struggle, the most important being the Champaran movement and the Quit India movement of 1942.

Jaiprakash Narayan had launched his movement against Congress from the same Gandhi Maidan in 1974.