New Delhi: Six devotees were killed and over 30 injured during issuance of tokens for ‘Baikunth Dwar’ darshan for Lord Venkateswara temple in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, Wednesday evening. The jostling and scramble among the devotees caused the stampede near Vishnu Niwasam.
Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress launched a veiled attack on TTD Chairman BR Naidu and home minister over the stampede incident.
Taking to X, the YSR Congress Party posted a tourist’s quote, which said: “I have been coming for the last 5 years but this has never happened before, this year it happened.. I thought I would die but by the grace of God I survived.. @APPOLICE100…Devotee’s grief that the fight happened because the gates were suddenly opened…
TTD Chairman BR Naidu, CM@ncbn, Home Minister @Anitha_TDP, isn’t this your doing?”
గత 5 సంవత్సరాల నుండి వస్తున్నాను కానీ ఎప్పుడూ ఇలా జరగలేదు, ఈ సంవత్సరమే ఇలా జరిగింది.. చచ్చిపోతాను అనుకున్నాను కానీ దేవుడి దయవల్ల బతికాను.. @APPOLICE100 ఒక్కసారిగా గేట్లు తియ్యడం వల్లే తోపులాట జరిగిందని భక్తుడి ఆవేదన
టీటీడీ చైర్మన్ బీఆర్ నాయుడు, సీఎం @ncbn, హోం మంత్రి… pic.twitter.com/2ytyRt6AXw
— YSR Congress Party (@YSRCParty) January 8, 2025
Meanwhile, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said the stampede in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati temple is deeply saddening and requested the Congress workers to provide all possible help in this difficult time.
In a post on X, he wrote: “The tragic stampede in Tirupati is deeply saddening. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families. Wishing a swift recovery to all those injured. I urge Congress leaders and workers to provide all possible assistance during this difficult time.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the death of devotees at Tirupati. He announced that the Andhra government is offering all possible assistance to the stampede victims. The PM wrote on X: “Pained by the stampede in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. My thoughts are with those who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover soon. The AP Government is providing all possible assistance to those affected.”
Earlier, Chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu said the incident had “deeply disturbed” him. “The death of several devotees in a stampede near Vishnu Niwasam in Tirupati for tokens to visit Tirumala Srivari Vaikuntha Dwara has shocked me. This tragic incident, which took place at a time when devotees had gathered in large numbers for tokens, deeply disturbed me,” the CM wrote in a post in Telugu on X.
He added: “In the wake of information that the condition of some of them is critical, I have directed higher officials to go to the spot and take relief measures… to provide better medical treatment to the injured and save their lives. I am talking to the district and TTD officials from time to time and am taking stock of the situation.”
Expressing deep shock over the tragic death of devotees in the stampede, Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) Chairman BR Naidu called the incident unfortunate. He clarified that the tragedy occurred when a DSP opened the gates, triggering a sudden rush of devotees.
How the stampede occurred
Among the six dead, five are women. One of the dead devotees was from Tamil Nadu’s Salem. The injured devotees in the stampede were rushed to the Ruia Hospital for medical treatment amid the chaos. The ticket rush was for the 10-day Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam (darshan of the deity from the northern entrance of the temple) which starts from January 10.
The TTD, which oversees the operations of temple, had set up special counters to distribute darshan tokens for the Vaikunta Ekadasi festival. These tokens, which allow devotees to visit Lord Venkateswara, were being given out at MGM High School in Bairagipatteda, near the Vishnu Nivasam temple in Tirupati.
Thousands of devotees started making a beeline at the counters from Wednesday morning, and by evening, the crowd had surged. They started pushing and jostling to get the tickets.
According to BR Naidu, chairman of TTD, the stampede occurred when a gate was opened to help a woman feeling unwell, but the crowd surged forward all at once, leading to chaos.
TTD has reportedly made arrangements to distribute 120,000 tokens to devotees for the “sarva darshan” (free darshan) of Lord Venkateshwara Swamy during the first three days of the annual darshan, from January 10 to 12.
According to officials, the distribution arrangements were reportedly set up at 94 counters across three pilgrim lodges — Vishnu Nivasam, Srinivasam, and Bhudevi complexes — apart from other locations such as Satyanarayanapuram, Bairagipatteda, and Ramanaidu School in Tirupati. Chaos erupted at Srinivasam to get the tickets for the annual pilgrimage.
CM Naidu to visit Tirumala to meet injured
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu will visit Tirumala on Thursday morning to meet the persons who were injured in the stampede that occurred at the Tirupati temple premises. A press release issued by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) on January 8, said, “Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu will visit Tirupati tomorrow morning to meet the injured.”
