Six dead in MP’s Kubereshwar Dham in 72 hours as lakhs gather for Kanwar Yatra

These deaths occurred during a massive religious gathering led by well-known spiritual preacher Pandit Pradeep Mishra. (Photo: X/@panditmishraji)

Six people have died in just 72 hours, from Monday to Wednesday, at Kubereshwar Dham in Madhya Pradesh’s Sehore district, turning what was meant to be a sacred spiritual journey into a devastating tragedy. All had come to Kubereshwar Dham for the grand Kanwar Yatra with religious devotion and hope, only to meet with tragedy. Their bodies now lie in the district hospital mortuary, NDTV reported.

The victims, Upendra (22) from Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh and Dilip Singh (57) from Raipur, Chhattisgarh, are the latest to die during the ongoing Kanwar Yatra. Earlier, Chatur Singh (50) from Panchwal in Gujarat, Ishwar Singh (65) from Rohtak in Haryana, Jaswanti Ben (56) from Rajkot, and Sangeeta Gupta (48) from Firozabad in Uttar Pradesh also lost their lives.

These deaths occurred during a massive religious gathering led by well-known spiritual preacher Pandit Pradeep Mishra. While the event was expected to attract large crowds, the actual turnout appears to have far exceeded any preparations made by the authorities or the Kubereshwar Dham management, leading to chaos, a stampede-like situation, unbearable traffic jams, and a lack of essentials like water, food, shelter, and toilets, according to the NDTV report.

The Indore-Bhopal Highway, a major route for pilgrims, has been choked since Tuesday night. Vehicles have been stranded for hours. While the police had officially announced restrictions on heavy vehicles and alternative routes, these plans were either poorly executed or simply ignored.

Pilgrims, including elderly people and women, have suffered from heat, hunger, and dehydration. Many fainted or fell during the crush of crowds. For lakhs of people who arrived from across Madhya Pradesh and other states like Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh, the basic promise of a safe and spiritual experience was shattered, the report said.

The government has acknowledged the crisis. Cabinet Minister Govind Rajput admitted that the crowd was far beyond expectations. "The crowd has grown much larger than expected. The system is falling short. I urge the administration to take control and ensure that such a tragedy doesn't repeat,” he was quoted by NDTV as saying.

Former Congress Minister Dr. Rajendra Singh was criticises the state government for the situation. "Faith does not justify failure. Pandit Pradeep Mishra may choose to distribute Rudraksha or not; that's his choice. But who takes responsibility for the deaths? Rakhi is approaching how many families will tie it with one less brother this year?" he said.

The management committee associated with Pandit Pradeep Mishra had assured arrangements for food, water, shelter, and safety. But those promises were not fulfilled. Devotees spoke of being forced to buy food, while toilets were missing, water was unavailable, and police stood by helplessly as people were pushed, trampled, or left to fend for themselves.

"There was no water, no toilets, and they made us pay for food! The committee did nothing. Women were pushed, the elderly were falling down, and the police just watched. We came for faith. We are leaving with fear,” a devotee was quoted by NDTV as saying.