Kerala HC pulls up state govt over Sabarimala stampede

Court asked Kerala government to file a detailed report on the stampede that claimed 102 lives.

Expressing displeasure over neglect of warnings by it on the safety of Sabarimala pilgrims,Kerala High Court on Monday asked the state government to file a detailed report on the stampede that claimed 102 lives.

The division bench of the High Court comprising Justice Thottathil Radhakrishnand and Justice P S Gopinathan,monitoring the affairs of Sabarimala pilgrimage,directed Police,Forest Departments and the Travancore Deveswom Board to furnish reports on the reasons that led to the disaster by January 20.

The judges recalled that they had given a warning to the authorities on January 5 about the need to regulate the flow of pilgrims to avoid disasters like stampede.

Story continues below this ad

The court also observed that there had been lack of co-ordination among various departments involved in conduct of the festival at Sabarimala,which attracts millions of pilgrims during the two-month long season from mid-Novrmber.

‘We want to know what had happened. Explain how the mishap occurred’,the judges said while giving the direction.

Court also sought from the government the details of the help provided to the injured and those stranded in the area after the accident.

The stampede,one of the worst pilgrimage tragedy of recent times,happened on Friday last Pullumedu area about 7 km from the hill shrine when a huge crow of devotees heading home after the ‘makar jyoti’ darshan of the Lord Ayyappa shrine.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram