Godavari Pushkaralu stampede: Deaths not due to negligence, claims police
16 July 2015 2:59 AM GMT
Police has booked a case under Section 174 of CrPC
Indian policemen stand near dead bodies of victims of a stampede during a Hindu religious bathing festival on the bank of the Godavari River in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh. (Photo: PTI)
Rajahmundry: The police does not think that the death of 27 devotees in the stampede on Tuesday warrant booking a case under Section 304(A) of IPC which deals with negligence on the part of officials leading to death.
Instead, police has booked a case under Section 174 of CrPC dealing with accidental death under suspicious circumstances. Based on a complaint lodged by the Rajahmundry urban mandal 24th ward village revenue officer P. Lachi Reddy, the Three Town Police booked a case (crime number 268/2015) on Tuesday. Central Zone DSP J. Kulasekhar is the investigation officer.
As the case has been booked under Section 174, the police will investigate the cause of the deaths, who were responsible and whether any stampede took place. The cops will also have to ascertain whether the deaths occurred due to suffocation, trampling or heart attack. Investigators are thus waiting for the post-mortem reports.
Central Zone DSP J. Kulasekhar said, “Based on a complaint lodged by the VRO, we have taken up inquiry. We may alter the sections depending upon the findings in the inquiry.”
Meanwhile, sources at the GGH said that the post-mortem reports of the 27 persons would be ready in a day or two. The SHR Council has filed a petition in the SHRC, seeking an inquiry to find if there was any negligence on the part of the police and officials that led to the stampede. The Council has also asked for initiating appropriate measures to provide compensation to the kin of the deceased.
SHR Council state president and AP Bar Council member Muppala Subba Rao said, “SHRC has accepted our petition and is taking up an inquiry. Booking a case under 174 CrPC itself speaks about the (lack of) commitment on the part of the government to take the guilty to task. It is quite clear that the police and officials failed to plan properly. Those responsible should be identified and punished as per law. Several cases booked under the same section against jail authorities in Central Jail were closed without fixing responsibility on the jail authorities.”
CM naidu went to pushkar ghat instead of saraswati
In the first report on the Rajahmundry stampede, East Godavari district collector H. Arun Kumar hinted that the large crowd that had built up between the inauguration of the Godavari Maha Pushkaralu and the time that people were allowed to enter the ghat was the reason for the tragedy.
The report also mentioned, “The district administration under the general supervision and overall control of collector has made all necessary arrangements for the conduct of mega religious event... CM of AP along with other VVIPs and VIPs took the first holy dip in the river Godavari often called Dakshina Ganga at about 6.26 am in the Pushkar Ghat.”
( Source : deccan chronicle )
Next Story
