Not A Big Incident: Hema Malini On Kumbh Mela Stampede, Triggers Controversy

BJP MP Hema Malini has triggered a controversy by claiming that the recent stampede at the Kumbh Mela is not a "big incident".

The stampede on the wee hours of January 29 killed 30 and left 60 injured as per the Uttar Pradesh government at the Sangam area in Prayagraj.

What Hema Malini Said?

"We had gone to Kumbh... We had a nice bath... Everything was well managed. It is right that the incident (stampede) took place ... Itna kuch bada nai hua tha (it was not a very big incident). I don't know how big it was. It is being exaggerated... It was very well-managed, and everything was done very well... So many people are coming, it is very difficult to manage but we are doing our best...," PTI quoted Malini as telling reporters in the Parliament House complex.

Her comments on social media have met with criticism.

Her statement comes amid the Opposition parties targeting the BJP government for hiding the death toll in the stampede. Responding to the opposition's claims, the Mathura MP stated, "They will say whatever they want to... It is their job to say wrong things."

Akhilesh Yadav Targets Yogi Govt

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav urged the Yogi government to give accurate data on the deaths while demanding transparency in the fatalities in the incident.

"For the Mahakumbh tragedy, there should be strict punitive action against those responsible and those who have hidden the truth should be punished. We ask the double-engine government, if there was no guilt, then why were the figures suppressed, hidden and erased?" he added.

"Log punye kamane aaye the aur apno ke shav lekar gaye hai (People came to earn merit, but they left with the bodies of their loved ones)" he added.

Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Police have filed an FIR against eight individuals for allegedly spreading misleading information about the Maha Kumbh on Twitter and Instagram.