UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath (file photo)
Prayagraj: Following the conclusion of the Maha Kumbh Mela here, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath accused the opposition of attempting to tarnish the image of Prayagraj by showing videos of chaos from “Cairo” and “Kathamandu”, alleging they were from the Mela.
The CM said that the opposition did not miss any opportunity to defame the Maha Kumbh through misinformation, IANS reported.
"Those who didn’t like this massive gathering of faith missed no opportunity to defame it. On the day of Mauni Amavasya, when 8 crore devotees were present, our priority was to ensure their safe bathing and departure to their destinations. But the opposition kept spreading false narratives and insulting us. Some were showing videos of incidents from Cairo, and others were from Kathmandu to defame Prayagraj. Previous governments never respected India’s faith," the BJP CM claimed.
However, it was on Mauni Amavasya night that a deadly stampede happened here, killing around 30 people and injuring 60 others.
The Mela was marred with multiple deadly incidents of stampedes, fires, attacks on railway coaches, a 300 km traffic jam, etc.
Following the stampede on Mauni Amavasya, the BJP tried to blame the opposition, bringing up a video of a group of youth who were raising slogans praising opposition Samajwadi Party leader as well as a Lok Sabha MP, Akhilesh Yadav. BJP claimed the youths in the video caused the stampede. However, a fact-checking online portal found out that the video was shot two days before the stampede.
As per allegations from various quarters, the Mela was full of mismanagement, which resulted in loss of life and property. The serious issue of sanitation hygiene took headlines even from the beginning of the pilgrimage event.