Hathras Stampede: UP Police Arrests 6 Sewadars; Self-styled God Man Narayan Sakar Aka Bhole Baba Absconding

Hathras Stampede Case: The Uttar Pradesh Police on Thursday arrested 6 'sevadars', including two women, in connection with the Hathras stampede that killed 121 people. According to the reports, the only accused named in the FIR is at large, while preacher Surajpal alias Narayan Sakar Hari alias Bhole Baba will be questioned if required during investigation, a senior officer said.

"All six persons who have been arrested worked as sevadars (volunteers) at the 'satsang'," Inspector General of Police (Aligarh Range) Shalabh Mathur told reporters here.

"A reward of Rs 1 lakh will be announced soon and non-bailable warrant (NBW) will also be issued against key accused Devprakash Madhukar," Mathura said. The preacher Surajpal was not mentioned as accused in the FIR lodged at the local Sikandra Rau police station on Tuesday after the stampede at Phulrai village that left 121 people dead in its wake.

Earlier today, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav said there cannot be a conspiracy behind the Hathras stampede but it can definitely be a conspiracy that the government wants to run away from its responsibility on this matter. The Samajwadi Party chief was reacting to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's remarks that he suspected a "possible conspiracy" behind the Hathras incident. "Look, there can't be a conspiracy in this. The conspiracy could be that the government wants to run away from its responsibility," he said.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister said the "government cannot run away from its responsibility". "The government should take a decision based on the pictures that have come from the media cameras. The real issue is that it was the responsibility of the administration and the government," said Yadav.

"The officers arrived when the incident happened. Why were they not sent earlier so that so many people do not gather there. What was the responsibility of the administration? he asked. Yadav also said that many people lost their lives due to lack of treatment. The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday formed a three-member judicial commission headed by a retired high court judge to probe the Hathras tragedy, also looking into the possibility that a "conspiracy" was behind the stampede. The panel will submit its report in two months. The stampede at self-styled godman Baba Bhole's satsang in Hathras on Tuesday left 121 people dead and 28 injured.

Talking to reporters after former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP from Saharanpur Haji Fazlur Rahman joined the Samajwadi Party at the party headquarter here, Yadav also raised questions on the health services of the state. He alleged that Deputy Chief Minister Brajesh Pathak, who is holding the Heath portfolio wants to become the chief minister by improving his "political health". Due to this tug of war, Chief Minister Adityanath has reduced the budget of the Health department, alleged Yadav.

"When the health minister wants to improve his political health, then who will pay attention to the department? He wants the chief minister (Yogi Adityanath) to step down and he himself (Pathak) become the chief minister. The chief minister also knows that he (Pathak) is after him, so he is not giving any budget to his department," he said.

Yadav said the Samajwadi Party has been continuously raising the point that the "health services of Uttar Pradesh have been completely destroyed". "Those who claimed that new medical colleges are being built are the same people, who have ruined the medical colleges started during the SP government," said Yadav.

"The BJP government has not built a single district hospital where the poor can get treatment and at such a time when there is an emergency, no one gets treatment at all," he added.