Modi, Chandrababu Naidu express shock over the stampede at Kasibugga temple

Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the loss of lives in the stampede at Sri Venkateswara Swamy temple at Kasibugga in Srikakulam district, and wished speedy recovery to those injured. He announced an ex gratia of ₹2 lakh to the next of kin of each deceased and ₹50,000 to those injured from the PM’s National Relief Fund. In a post on X, the PM said he was pained by the stampede and his thoughts were with those who lost their near and dear ones.

Home Minister Amit Shah said on X that he was deeply shocked by the loss of lives in the stampede. He conveyed his heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased, and said he was praying for the speedy recovery of the injured. BJP National President and Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda said he was shocked by the incident and wished speedy recovery to the injured.

Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said at the NTR Bharosa pensions’ distribution programme in Sri Satya Sai district that the incident could have been averted if police were informed about the congregation in advance and necessary arrangements made. He promised to take stringent action against those responsible for the incident. 

Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan said in a press release that he was deeply saddened by the death of several people in the stampede and attributed it to failure to control the heavy rush. He told the officials of the Endowments Department to ensure strict management of queue lines at temples on such festive occasions. He sought special care for women, children and the elderly so that they do not face any inconvenience, and deployment of police personnel and doctors and paramedical staff in advance to deal with such emergencies.

Minister for IT and HRD Nara Lokesh said he was appalled by the stampede and that the government would stand by the victims. Ministers Vangalapudi Anitha, K. Atchannaidu, T.G. Bharat, Gottipati Ravi Kumar, Kondapalli Srinivas, Anagani Satya Prasad and Kolusu Parthasarathy expressed shock over the incident and wished speedy recovery of the injured persons.

Expressing shock and sadness over the incident, BJP State president P.V.N. Madhav said the government should inquire into the stampede and support the victims by all possible means.

While expressing shock and grief over the loss of lives in the stampede, YSRCP president and former CM Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy held the government responsible for the tragedy. He said in a press release that six devotees died during a stampede during Vaikuntha Ekadasi in Tirupati and seven died in a similar incident at Simhachalam temple earlier.

“Despite repeated tragedies, the government failed in taking proper precautions and has acted with utter negligence. The loss of innocent lives reflects the inefficiency of Chandrababu Naidu’s administration,” he commented, urging the government to take serious corrective measures to prevent such incidents in the future.