An Indian preacher, Bhole Baba, stated that the deaths in the recent Hathras stampede were inevitable, attributing the tragedy to fate.
Bhole Baba spoke to the media on July 17, following the deadly incident on July 2, where 121 people were killed in a stampede after his sermon in Hathras. He expressed his sorrow, saying, “I am very distressed by what happened, but who can possibly challenge fate? Whoever comes to this earth has to go one day — it is only a matter of when.”
The stampede occurred during a prayer meeting attended by 250,000 devotees, exceeding the authorized limit. The majority of the victims were women. The police report following the incident named several organizers of the event as suspects, though Bhole Baba was not among them.
So far, 11 volunteers associated with Bhole Baba have been arrested. His lawyer claimed that “anti-social elements” in the crowd caused the stampede.
Religious gatherings in India have a history of deadly incidents due to inadequate crowd management. In 2008, a stampede at a temple in Jodhpur resulted in 224 deaths and over 400 injuries.
