Puri/IBNS: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has sought an apology from the devotees of Lord Jagannath for the deadly stampede that occurred near a temple in Puri and suspended two officials for "negligence".

Three people died and 50 others were injured in a stampede that broke out near Shree Gundicha Temple in the wee hours on Sunday.

The Chief Minister wrote on X, "Due to the intense eagerness among devotees to have a glimpse of Mahaprabhu at Sharadhabali, an unfortunate incident occurred because of the resulting jostling and chaos.

"Personally, I and my government seek forgiveness from all Jagannath devotees. 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."

"This negligence is unforgivable. 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."

Majhi has announced an ex-gratia of Rs. 25 lakh each for the next of kin of the devotees who died in the stampede. 

Hundreds of thousands of devotees have gathered in Puri for the annual Rath Yatra festival.

The incident occurred around 4-4:20 am on Saradhabali when a vehicle carrying ritual materials reportedly entered the crowd.

A large crowd had gathered for a darshan, and as the crowd swelled, some people fell and a stampede began.

Three people died on the spot. These include two women, Prabhati Das and Basanti Sahu, and 70-year-old Premakant Mohanty.

All three, it is learnt, are from Khurda district and had come to Puri for the Rath Yatra.

The Indian Express, quoting eyewitnesses, reported that there were no adequate police arrangements or officials on-site to manage the swelling number of pilgrims.

According to hospital officials, some of the injured were discharged after receiving primary treatment, while others remain hospitalised with serious injuries.

'None takes responsibility,' says Congress

Reacting to the stampede, Congress leader Shama Mohamed criticised the Chief Minister and Odisha government for not taking any responsibility for the stampede.

"It is an unfortunate incident that people went to offer prayers and lost their lives. When a stampede occurred in UP, no one took responsibility for it. Here too, no one took responsibility.

"The Chief Minister has just apologised. This is wrong...someone should take responsibility for this by resigning...they should give importance to the lives of the people," the Congress leader told ANI.