'Not very big incident': BJP MP Hema Malini on Maha Kumbh stampede

BJP MP Hema Malini said that so many people are coming to the Maha Kumbh Mela and it gets very difficult to manage

BJP MP Hema Malini on Tuesday said the Maha Kumbh stampede, in which 30 people were killed, was not a "very big incident" and was "being exaggerated."

 

After attending the Lok Sabha, Member of Parliament from Mathura said, "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 well. So many people are coming, it is very difficult to manage but we are doing our best," news agency ANI quoted her as saying. 

 

#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

 

Hema Malini took a holy dip at Maha Kumbh on Mouni Amvasya on January 29, the same day the stampede broke out. The BJP-led governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh are facing the Opposition's heat over the management of Maha Kumbh Mela, with allegations of a "cover up" being raised.  Reacting to Hema Malini's statement, Congress MP Tariq Anwar said, "Hema Malini can never know what it was really like. When she visited, she was given VIP treatment. Things at Maha Kumbh went downhill because the police and administration were both after VIPs. They did not bother about the arrangements and security of common people. If she  says this issue is not a big one, it is unfortunate, and it is a mockery of the victims."

 

Akhilesh Yadav slams government in Parliament

 

Participating in the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address in Lok Sabha, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said alleged that the government was hiding the number of deaths in the Maha Kumbh stampede.

 

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister demanded that the government call an all-party meeting to discuss the arrangements of the Kumbh and hand over disaster management and Lost and Found Centre to the Army.

 

"The government is continuously reeling out budget numbers, please also give the numbers of those who died in the Kumbh," Yadav said.

 

Yadav claimed the government used JCB machines (earth movers) and tractor trollies to clear the bodies lying around after the stampede.

 

"People came to earn blessings (punya), but had to leave with the bodies of near and dear ones. The miracle here was that the government found bodies but was refusing to accept the numbers," Yadav said.

 

"The government showered petals from helicopter when bodies were lying in the mortuary. What kind of sanatan (timeless) traditions are these? The bodies were lying around, footwear and clothes were strewn all over. JCB machines and tractor trollies were used to throw them away. When this raised a hue and cry, the government rushed to cover-up," he added.

 

(With inputs from agencies)