Stampede kills 24 in Varanasi

A stampede at a religious gathering in northern India killed at least 24 people yesterday as thousands of devotees of a controversial guru tried to cross a bridge at once, police said.

The followers of Jai Gurudev, a leader of a local religious sect, had gathered on the outskirts of Varanasi, a Hindu holy town in Uttar Pradesh state, when the deadly stampede broke out.

At least 20 others were injured in the crush and were undergoing treatment at nearby hospitals.

State police chief Javeed Ahmed blamed overcrowding on the old iron bridge for the disaster.

A spokesman of the religious sect said the stampede occurred after a rumour spread that the narrow bridge had collapsed, the Press Trust of India (PTI) news agency reported.

Devotees from nearby districts had gathered for the two-day religious congregation on the banks of river Ganges.

State Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has ordered a high-level enquiry into the tragedy while announcing monetary compensation for the victims, his spokesman Rajendra Chaudhary said.