Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi has issued an apology after three people were killed in a stampede during the Jagannath Rath Yatra on Sunday. The stampede occurred at 4 am in the morning.(PTI)

While three people lost their lives, several others were injured in the stampede which took place early Sunday morning near Shree Gundicha Temple in Odisha’s Puri.

The three victims – Basanti Sahu, Premakant Mohanty and Pravati Das – died due to suffocation, Odisha law minister Prithviraj Harichandan said.

Harichandan said that the state government would conduct a thorough investigation into the incident, following which strict action would be taken against those found guilty.

Here’s what we know about the tragic stampede in Puri so far

📌 Situation before the stampede

The stampede occurred at 4 am in the morning, when several devotees were waiting near the Gundicha Temple for the unveiling of the three deities on the chariots.

In the lead-up to the incident, two trucks loaded with Charamala wood (considered scared) entered the Saradhabali area, which led to chaos among the crowd of devotees.

📌Eyewitnesses claim poor crowd management

A resident of Puri, who was allegedly present at the temple during the stampede, said that the crowd management was “not good”. He said that a new entrance had been created for the VIPs, with the common people being asked to exit the temple from a distance. However, he claimed that people started to exit from the entrance itself, increasing the crowd there.

📌Odisha DGP investigating incident

State law minister Harichandan said that the Director General of Police of Odisha is investigating the stampede, adding that stringent action against those responsible would be ensured. Odisha DGP YB Khurania had rushed to the Gundicha temple to assess the situation in the aftermath of the stampede. Harichandan told ANI that additional police personnel had been deployed at the spot.

📌Odisha CM seeks forgiveness, apologises for incident

Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi apologised on behalf of the state government for the incident. He also sought an apology from the devotees of Lord Jagannath.

Majhi expressed his condolences to the families of those who had lost their lives, adding that the security lapses behind the incident would be investigated. “This negligence is unpardonable,” Majhi said, while stating that he had directed for necessary steps to be taken to “initiate exemplary action” against those responsible.

📌Naveen Patnaik slams Odisha government’s ‘incompetence’

Biju Janata Dal chief and former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik expressed his condolences to the victims of the stampede, while praying for the recovery of those injured. Patnaik alleged an “abysmal failure” of the crowd management during the Rath Yatra.

He said that the stampede “exposes the government’s glaring incompetence in ensuring a peaceful festival for devotees.” Citing eyewitnesses, Patnaik said that the initial response to the tragedy had come from the victims’ relatives, adding that no government machinery was present to control the surging crowds.

“While I refrain from accusing the government of criminal negligence, their blatant callousness has undeniably contributed to this tragedy,” Patnaik said in a post on X.