Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu publicly admonished officials of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) and the district administration, seeking explanations during his visit to the site of the stampede in Tirupati.

The incident, which occurred at a ticket distribution centre, claimed six lives and left over 40 injured. The state government announced a compensation of Rs 25 lakh for the families of the deceased. Tirupati police have registered two FIRs in connection with the tragedy.

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Despite the stampede, all 1.2 lakh tokens were distributed within a few hours after the counters opened. TTD had originally planned a three-day schedule for token distribution.

Thousands of devotees from Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Karnataka had gathered to collect tokens for the Vaikuntha Ekadashi festival, a ten-day event during which devotees prefer visiting in the first two days. While TTD initially announced the token distribution would begin at 5 a.m., it was advanced to midnight due to the swelling crowds.

Devotees criticized the poor arrangements at the venue, citing the lack of water, food, and restrooms. Many had started gathering as early as Wednesday evening, anticipating heavy crowds.

The incident occurred at the Ramanaidu Municipal School Grounds near the Bairagipatteda Centre, where inadequate barricades and crowd management worsened the situation.

The stampede was triggered when staff at the centre attempted to open the gates to assist an ill person. Misinterpreting this as the opening of the gates, the crowd surged forward, causing the gates to collapse.

The stampede killed five women and one man. Videos from the scene revealed untrained personnel attempting to perform CPR, and an ambulance delay of 20 minutes further hampered trauma care.

Chief Minister Naidu visited the TTD-run SVIMS Hospital to meet with the injured and assured them of government support. At the stampede site, he questioned TTD Executive Officer Shyamala Rao, JEO Gauthami, District Collector S. Venkateshwar, and the SP in front of the media.

“Why did the stampede occur? Were proper instructions given by the EO? How were 2,500 people allowed in a venue with a capacity for only 2,000?” he demanded, rejecting explanations of “local congestion.” Naidu rebuked the officials, stating, “Don’t you understand human psychology? People panic when gates are suddenly opened.”

The opposition YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) blamed the tragedy on poor coordination among officials, calling it a “black day in the history of TTD.” They demanded strict action against those responsible.