Bhubaneswar: Opposition BJD and Congress on Friday criticised the govt for alleged mismanagement during Thursday’s Rath Yatra in Puri. Two devotees died owing to a crowd surge, while many others were injured. The BJP, however, insisted the festival was conducted smoothly.BJD chief whip Pramila Mallik criticised the authorities for refusing to acknowledge the incident as a stampede. “Visuals and eyewitness accounts of injured devotees do not lie. It is shocking that the govt is unwilling to accept it as a stampede. There were attempts at every level to suppress the incident,” Mallik said.“The govt claimed preparations began in Jan. The DGP boasted of unprecedented security and crowd‑control measures to avoid a repeat of the 2025 stampede that killed three devotees outside Gundicha temple. Security in‑charge Saumendra Priyadarsi, too, made tall claims. All of them stand exposed after this tragedy,” she added.Congress state president Bhakta Charan Das said the deaths were only part of a series of failures. “Due to mismanagement at every level, key rituals including the pahandi of Lord Jagannath got delayed. The chariot‑pulling was also inordinately late. Tahia (floral crown) of Lord Jagannath was removed, causing resentment among devotees,” Das said.According to BJD’s Puri MLA Sunil Mohanty, a stampede-like situation stemmed from devotees’ frustration. “Had the chariots been pulled on time, the crowd would have dispersed towards each of the three chariots. Instead, delays forced devotees to converge at one place for hours in the rain, leading to impatience and pushing,” Mohanty alleged.The BJP dismissed the charges as baseless. Party MLA and govt chief whip Saroj Kumar Pradhan said the festival was successfully organised. “There was no lapse in preparations. I was present. Everything was managed well. The opposition’s job is to oppose, but their claims have no merit,” Pradhan told reporters.He added that despite adverse weather, lakhs of devotees took part in the Rath Yatra. “Managing such a huge crowd is always a challenge. The govt, police and temple administration handled it effectively. No stampede took place. The chief minister’s office already clarified on Thursday evening,” he asserted.
