Some people opened cans of poisonous substance in crowd, triggered stampede: Bhole Baba's lawyer
New Delhi (PTI): Self-styled godman Bhole Baba's lawyer AP Singh alleged on Sunday that witnesses told him some people opened cans containing a poisonous substance in the crowd during the July 2 Hathras 'satsang', triggering the stampede.
Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Singh also alleged a conspiracy, which he attributed to Bhole Baba's "rising popularity", behind the stampede.
The stampede after the 'satsang' of self-styled godman Surajpal alias Narayan Sakar Hari alias Bhole Baba in Uttar Pradesh's Hathras left 121 people, mostly women, dead.
"Witnesses have reached out to me and said there were 15-16 people carrying cans of a poisonous substance that they opened in the crowd. I have seen post-mortem reports of those killed and it showed that they died of asphyxiation and not because of injuries," Singh claimed.
Alleging a conspiracy behind the stampede, he said, "There were vehicles parked at the site to help the men escape. We have proof and we will submit it. This is the first time I am speaking about it."
Singh claimed the witnesses who reached out to him requested anonymity. "We will demand security for them."
So far, nine people, including key accused Devprakash Madhukar, have been arrested in connection with the stampede.
On Saturday, Hathras police said it was also probing into the suspected funding of the congregation by a political party and warned of the "strictest possible" action against it.
Madhukar was the main organiser and fundraiser of the 'satsang' where more than 2.5 lakh people had gathered, much beyond the permitted limit of 80,000, officials had said.
The godman was not mentioned as an accused in the FIR lodged at the local Sikandra Rao police station.
The judicial commission set up by the Uttar Pradesh government will speak to anyone required for its inquiry, a probe panel member said when asked if Bhole Baba would also be questioned.
The commission will also issue a public notice soon, asking locals and witnesses to share any evidence related to the stampede, along with their statements, another member and chairperson of the panel, retired Allahabad High Court judge Brijesh Kumar Shrivastava, told reporters in Hathras.
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Manipur: Mortal remains of children killed in bomb attack handed over to family
Imphal (PTI): The mortal remains of two children, who were killed in a bomb attack in Manipur's Bishnupur district in April, were handed over to family members on Saturday, officials said.
The bodies of the five-year-old boy and his six-month-old sister were kept in the morgue for 25 days, as the family members had refused to accept the mortal remains, demanding that the perpetrators be brought to book at the earliest.
On April 25, Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh had appealed to the family members of the children to accept the bodies. Singh had also said that all efforts were underway to find the culprits.
The two children were killed in a bomb attack at Tronglaobi in Bishnupur district on April 7. Their bodies were kept in the morgue at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences in Imphal.
The incident had triggered widespread violent protests in the five valley districts of Manipur, and the case was subsequently handed over to the NIA.
Hundreds of people lined up along the way to Tronglaobi to offer floral tributes, as the mortal remains were taken for the last rites in an open vehicle earlier in the day.
