At Maha Kumbh, Adityanath praises saints for acting responsibly post-stampede; hits out at Sanatan Dharma opponents

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath praises saints for restraint during Maha Kumbh stampede, criticizes political opponents.

In his first visit to the Maha Kumbh after the January 29 stampede, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath Saturday praised the saints for "acting with such restraint" that day as he took a veiled potshot at political opponents, saying they tried to besmirch the glory of the mega event so that it "becomes a matter of great global embarrassment".

He said this soon after conducting an aerial survey of pilgrim management measures at the Maha Kumbh venue ahead of the February 3 Basant Panchami Amrit snan.

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After landing in Prayagraj, he directly headed to Sangam Nose, the site of the stampede, to inspect it. He was briefed by Mela Officer Vijay Kiran Anand and DIG Vaibhav Krishna about the incident.

According to official figures, 30 people died and at least 60 were injured in the stampede on Mauni Amavasya.

"On the Mauni Amavasya day during the Amrit Snan, a tragedy unfolded here, and I must compliment the saints and seers on how, under testing circumstances, they acted with such restraint. Faced with the challenge that was there in front of all of us, as some 'punyatma' [blessed souls] became victims of a 'hadsa' [accident]. But the saints acted in much the same way then as a family elder reacts when their family is confronted with some problem," Adityanath said while addressing a meeting of saints at the Maha Kumbh.

"The family elders remain patient whenever their family faces some challenge. Instead, the elders negotiate the challenge and ensure that the problem is resolved. You must have seen that some opponents of Sanatan Dharma were trying to test the patience of the saints so that the issue [stampede ahead of big Mauni Amavasya Amrit snan] becomes a matter of great global embarrassment," he said.