At least six people were crushed to death at a Hindu religious gathering in India, with several more injured, officials said Thursday.
A huge crowd had gathered to collect entrance tokens to visit the Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh when the stampede broke out on Wednesday.
“The unfortunate incident… has claimed the lives of six devotees. I pray to god to give peace to the departed souls,” Prem Kumar Jain, spokesman of the state’s ruling Telugu Desam Party, told reporters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi offered condolences to the families of the deceased.
“My thoughts are with those who have lost their near and dear ones,” his office said on social media platform X.
Deadly accidents are common at places of worship in India during major religious festivals due to poor crowd management and safety lapses.
In July last year, 121 people were killed in northern Uttar Pradesh state during a Hindu religious gathering.
Another 112 people died in 2016 after a huge explosion caused by a banned fireworks display marking the Hindu new year at a temple in southern Kerala state.
Wednesday’s incident comes days before the start of the Kumbh Mela, a six-week Hindu festival of prayer and sacred bathing expected to be the largest religious gathering in history.
Up to 400 million pilgrims are expected to attend, according to organisers.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")