Eight die in stampede at Chandrababu Naidu’s public meeting

The TDP president promised ₹10 lakh ex gratia to kin of those who died, and support for children’s education

Tragedy struck Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N. Chandrababu Naidu’s public meeting at Kandukur in Nellore district of Andhra Pradesh on Wednesday when eight people died after slipping and falling into a drain in a stampede at the overcrowded venue. Four were injured, and the condition of two of them is critical.

The venue was chock-a-block with a people gathered to hear Mr. Naidu speak at the public meeting conducted as part of his roadshow under the party’s “Idemi Kharma” programme.

The incident came as a rude shock to the TDP president, who abruptly ended his speech and visited the hospital where the victims were taken for treatment. He announced an ex gratia of ₹10 lakh to the kin of each of the deceased and said that his party would also shoulder the responsibility of their children’s education.

Mr. Naidu’s public meetings have been attracting huge crowds. Thanking the people of Kandukur, he said he had visited the place many times in the past but this was the first time he had seen this kind of a crowd and such unprecedented enthusiasm. Even as he was talking, there was a commotion from a direction that attracted everybody’s attention. Amidst confused voices that a few persons had fallen into a drain, Mr. Naidu directed the police personnel and also a few party volunteers to climb down from his vehicle and see what was happening.

Unaware of the seriousness of the situation, Mr. Naidu initially waited for the din to settle so that he could resume his speech. When the news of the deaths was confirmed, he rushed to the hospital and announced ex gratia to the bereaved families.