Hathras Stampede: Plea In Supreme Court Seeks Expert Committee Probe Of The Incident

A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking an expert committee inquiry into the Hathras stampede incident, which resulted in the deaths of over a hundred people visiting a religious congregation.

The stampede took place on July 2 in the Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh.

The plea states that such occurrences depict the serious condition of responsibility lapse, negligence, and unfaithful duty of care towards the public by the government authorities. It points out that there were no adequate security arrangements to prevent or avoid such an accident.

It further states that whenever such incidents happen, it is the common and poor people that suffer the most and become victims.

As a result, the plea seeks a court-monitored probe into the incident by a five-member expert committee headed by a retired top court justice.

In addition, it seeks a direction to the committee for framing guidelines and safety measures that should be taken to avoid such incidents in large public gatherings. It also seeks directions from the state governments to avoid such incidents at large public gatherings.

The plea underscores that it is the absolute liability of the centre and the state government to ensure management, administrative efficiency, and a reasonable duty of care towards the people, as public welfare is of paramount importance for any government.

It highlights the mechanical failures, lapses, and negligent actions of government authorities who failed to oversee the implementation of security and safety measures.

Therefore, the plea also seeks to initiate legal action against the officials and the authorities for their negligent conduct.