Cong files plaint with NHRC, seeks probe into stampede

On the directions of Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Devender Yadav, the Legal & Human Rights Department of the DPCC filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Monday, seeking a thorough investigation into the stampede at the New Delhi railway station on February 15.

The incident, which led to the death of 18 passengers, is being attributed to gross negligence and lack of crowd management by the Railway authorities and security forces.

The complaint asserts that the Railways sold approximately 1,500 tickets per hour to passengers bound for Prayagraj, but they failed to make necessary arrangements for crowd control.

It mentioned how the Railways could sell such a high volume of tickets without adequate arrangements for train coaches or crowd management.

Yadav, in his statement, sought accountability for the tragedy. He also demanded strict and immediate action against officials responsible for the incident.

He noted that the lack of preparedness was not an isolated case, citing a similar stampede in Prayagraj last month where 35-40 persons lost their lives due to poor crowd management.

The complaint also pointed out that the Maha Kumbh, which attracts millions of devotees, led to an overwhelming number of passengers travelling to Uttar Pradesh to take a holy dip at Sangam. Despite this, the Central and Uttar Pradesh governments failed to ensure adequate arrangements for such a massive influx.

The complaint further stressed that even after the tragedy, the situation at the New Delhi railway station remained chaotic. The crowd even exceeded the station’s capacity on February 16, raising concerns over further potential incidents, if not addressed immediately.

The delegation that filed the complaint included LHRD chairman advocate Sunil Kumar, Rajesh Garg, chairman of Booth Management, and several other advocates and law students from the DPCC.

The complaint requests the NHRC to constitute an inquiry committee to investigate the stampede, take action against negligent officials and issue directions to the Railway authorities and the Delhi Police to implement foolproof crowd management measures at the New Delhi railway station and the Inter-State Bus Terminal in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.