The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking the formulation of specific safety guidelines for devotees attending the Maha Kumbh. The PIL was brought forth in response to a tragic stampede at Sangam area in Prayagraj, which resulted in the deaths of at least 30 individuals and injuries to 60 others.
The bench, led by Chief Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Sanjay Kumar, deferred the matter to the Allahabad High Court. This decision followed submissions by the Uttar Pradesh government that a similar plea was already under consideration in the High Court.
Describing the event as “an unfortunate incident,” Chief Justice Khanna advised petitioner advocate Vishal Tiwari to pursue the case in the Allahabad High Court. The Supreme Court emphasized that the local court was already engaged with the issue, suggesting a more immediate and specialized response might ensue there.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the Uttar Pradesh government, informed the court that a judicial inquiry into the stampede had been initiated. The state is actively pursuing measures to understand the causes of the incident and to prevent such tragedies in the future.
The incident, which occurred on the auspicious day of Mauni Amavasya during the early hours, has sparked significant concern over crowd management and safety at such large-scale religious gatherings.
Tiwari, in his plea filed on January 30, a day subsequent to the calamity, invoked Article 32 of the Constitution. He sought the apex court’s intervention to establish stringent guidelines to prevent such incidents, aiming to safeguard the fundamental rights to equality and life as per Article 21.
