Families of India stampede victims ponder future without loved ones
Al Jazeera
Overcrowding and insufficient exits contributed to the deadly crush in Hathras that killed more than 120 people.
The orange flames shone a light on the twilight scene as Savitri Devi, 50, was cremated.
She was among more than 120 people, mostly women, who died in a stampede last week at a religious festival in northern India, as the faithful surged towards a preacher and chaos ensued among the attendees.
The event had received permission to accommodate only 80,000 people. It is not clear how many made it inside the giant tent set up in a muddy field in a village in Hathras district in Uttar Pradesh state but they were reported to be about three times the permitted number.
“It was a matter of fate. What does [Bhole] Baba have to do with it?” Vir Pal Singh said about his wife Savitri Devi’s passing. Singh was a volunteer at the religious gathering. The couple had been followers of the Hindu guru, Bhole Baba, for more than 10 years.
Police are still investigating the cause of the stampede. The state’s Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath told reporters that a crowd rushed towards the preacher to touch him as he left the stage, and volunteers struggled to control them.
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