Stampede at Mumbai's Bandra terminus: Chaos and crowds collide amid festive rush, videos go viral
Mumbai (PTI): Chaos and cacophony reigned at Western Railway's heavily-patronised Bandra Terminus on Sunday morning after a mass of people tried to board a moving train to reach their native places for Diwali and Chhath, leaving nine injured, many becoming the subject of harrowing social media videos.
The incident took place around 2:45 am when passengers rushed to board the unreserved 22921 Bandra-Gorakhpur Antyodaya Express while it was moving into platform number 1 from Bandra Terminus yard.
While scheduled departure of the 22-coach train was at 5:10am, officials said during such festival rush passengers often scurry to occupy seats as quickly as possible since there is no reservation.
Videos that flooded social media since morning showed people running and shouting, and some passengers injured and bloodied.
One video showed a man with blood oozing out of his wounds, while another injured passenger lay next to him. Shockingly, several people were seen boarding the compartment even as a passenger with a leg injury lay by the door.
Another video doing the rounds of social media showed a Railway Protection Force constable carrying an injured passenger on his shoulder, while another personnel was seen ferrying a passenger to the hospital in a makeshift cloth stretcher.
Amid the chaos, local residents and those present on other platforms were also seen in several videos helping the injured persons.
Incidentally, civic officials said nine persons were injured and identified them as Shabhir Abdul Rehman (40), Parmeshwar Sukhdar Gupta (28), Ravindra Harihar Chuma (30), Ramsevak Ravindra Prasad Prajapati (29), Sanjay Tilakram Kangay (27), Divyanshu Yogendra Yadav (18), Mohammad Shareef Shaikh (25), Indrajith Sahani (19) and Noor Mohammad Shaikh.
Police said Sahani and Noor Mohammad Shaikh had been rushed to nearby Bhabha Hospital in a critical condition.
However, a statement from Western Railway said two persons were injured.
The statement also informed that 130 festival special trains were being run to various destinations, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, in view of the upcoming Diwali and Chhath festivals.
In all, these special trains will make 2,300 trips from Mumbai Central and Bandra in the metropolis, as well as Valsad and Udhna in neighbouring Gujarat, the WR statement added.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
