Puri stampede: How the tragedy overshadowed Odisha CM Mohan Majhi's one-year anniversary in office

The management of this year's Puri Rath Yatra has become the talk of political circles,after the death of three devotees—and six injured—in the early hours of Sunday at Saradhabali, near the Sri Gundicha temple.

This led to Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi to transfer both the District Collector and Superintendent of Police for the Puri district, in addition to suspending two other police officers—DCP Bishnu Pati and Commandant Ajay Padhi.

ALSO READ | Rath Yatra stampede exposes BJP govt’s 'glaring incompetence': Naveen Patnaik

From Lok Sabha LOP Rahul Gandhi to Naveen Patnaik, his counterpart in the state Assembly, the opposition has come down heavily on the incumbent BJP government for mishandling a festival important to Odisha's culture.

'Personally, my government and I seek forgiveness from all Jagannath devotees,” CM Majhi said, amid the demands of opposition leaders.

Calling the stampede an “unforgivable” negligence, CM Majhi explained in an X post that an “immediate investigation into the security lapses will be conducted, and I have directed that necessary steps be taken to initiate exemplary action against those responsible”.

“We express our condolences to the families of those devotees whose lives were extinguished at Sharadhabali and pray to Mahaprabhu Jagannath to grant them the strength to bear this profound sorrow,” he added.

ALSO READ | 3 killed, dozens injured in stampede during Rath Yatra in Odisha’s Puri

Puri's District Collector Siddharth Shankar Swain has been transferred as an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) in the General Administration department at Bhubaneswar, while Puri SP Vineet Agarwal has also been reassigned.

The District Collector for Khurda, Chanchal Rana, has been appointed as the outgoing Collector's replacement, with STF DIG Pinak Mishra replacing Agarwal.

The state government also appointed senior IAS officer Arvind Agarwal—a former Collector for Puri—to oversee the operations of the rest of the festival till its end.  

Agarwal’s appointment is seen as a strategic move  to restore public confidence and ensure robust oversight for the Rath Yatra: one of India’s major religious festivals that draws millions of  devotees.

Agarwal will balance his existing duties as a Special Secretary to the Government (Sports & YS Department) while coordinating with local authorities to implement enhanced safety measures and crowd control protocols for the remainder of the festival.

In another significant administrative move, Odisha police headquarters assigned additional Director General of Police Soumendra Priyadarshi as the overall in-charge of police arrangements for the remainder of the Rath Yatra.

CM Majhi has also announced an ex-gratia compensation of ₹25 lakhs for the next of kin of each of the deceased. Additional financial and medical aid are being offered to those injured.

According to eyewitness accounts, the pulling of the three chariots, which restarted on Saturday morning, was completed in the afternoon in front of the Gundicha temple on Saradhabali.

A large number of pilgrims were present there. Every hour, hundreds more flocked to Puri to witness the deities on the rathas (chariots).

The priests closed the darshan at about 12:40 AM by covering the chariots with curtains (Pahuda). Incoming devotees began to wait near the chariots for the Pahuda to be opened, because they had no information about the timing of the darshan.

At about 4 AM, the curtains were lifted and priests began the Mangal Arati ritual for Lord Jagannath. Meanwhile, two trucks entered the area and unloaded ladder parts to be fixed on the chariots to facilitate the Pahandi (transfer ritual) of deities into the Gundicha temple, after which the deities will be worshipped inside temple till their return journey.

There was little space for the movement of the trucks as the area was crowded. Yet, the trucks unloaded the ladders in front of the chariots.

Devotees squeezed themselves to make way for trucks,causing at least 15 devotees to fall on the heap of ladder parts, as people trampled them.

Barring a few constables, no senior officer was present at the place either, nor was there any ambulance service or medics at the first-aid post.

The husband of one of the deceased told the media that he called for help, and after one hour, an ambulance arrived. By the time they reached the district hospital, two were declared dead, while a third died soon after.

A closer look into the affairs leading up to the mishap reveals many shortcomings.

The administration barricaded the area around the temple, which was usually a resting place for devotees, as a result of which the pilgrims took to the temple front for shelter that night.

It had also made arrangements anticipating the arrival of over 15 lakh pilgrims to join the Rath Yatra.

In the final preparation meeting, the Odisha CM had even announced that efforts were on to make it an incident-free event. Ten thousand state police force personnel, NSG commandos and snipers, RAF, ODRAF, NDRF, anti-drone and anti-sabotage teams, bomb detection and disposal teams, and dog squads were to be deployed.

The Navy, Coast Guard, and State Marine Police vessels were to patrol Puri's coastline as well.

AI-powered CCTV cameras had been installed at Badadanda, one of the festival venues, and along the  main roads connecting to the city to monitor the arrival of pilgrims and others through a unified command and control station.

It is yet to be seen whether all these measures had worked.

A senior retired police officer said on condition of anonymity that the administration focused on  the commencing day of the Rath Yatra: the Sandhya Darshan, Bahuda, and Sunavesh rituals.

Unfortunately, no responsible officer of the administration visited the hospital to meet the bereaved families either, sparking outrage.

Following criticism on a local level since day one, the tragedy has now attracted national level criticism, with senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi expressing deep sorrow over the tragic stampede deaths besides the numerous injuries.

“This tragedy is a serious warning – for such large events, security arrangements and crowd management preparations must be taken seriously and thoroughly reviewed. Protecting lives is paramount, and no lapses in this responsibility are acceptable,” he said, in an X post.

From his hospital room in Mumbai, former Odisha Chief Minister and Biju Janta Dal (BJD) president Naveen Patnaik called the tragedy a “glaring example of administrative failure” on X, expressing condolences for the bereaved families and demanding immediate remedial actions.

As Odisha mourns the lives lost in one of its most cherished religious events, questions loom over governance, safety infrastructure, and accountability at mass public gatherings, as the tragedy negates the impact of CM Majhi completing one year of incumbency in Odisha.

India