Srikakulam temple founder calls stampede 'act of god': Report

A day after at least nine people lost their lives in a stampede at a newly-built temple in Kasibugga in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh, its nonagenarian founder, Hari Mukunda Panda, has said that nobody was responsible for the tragedy and called it “an act of god”, as per a report in the Times of India.

Another report said that 94-year-old Panda, a native of Odisha, even refused to inform the police and administration about the impending event at the temple, saying it was located on his private land. At least 17 people were injured in the stampede.

A case has been registered against Panda, who lives in Kasibugga. Another report cited sources as saying that Panda built the Sri Venkateshwara Temple modelled after the Sri Venkateshwara Temple in Tirumala, also in Andhra, after facing an unpleasant experience at the original temple during darshan.

Unexpected turnout

Expressing his surprise over the number of turnouts at the temple on the fateful day, which was spiritually significant for Lord Venkateshwara's devotees due to Karthik Ekadashi, Panda told TOI that Saturdays usually witness around 3,000-4,000 people visiting the temple. On the day of the stampede, the crowd was moderate till 9 am but started to swell after that. "Nobody is responsible for the stampede -- it was an act of God," he was quoted as saying by TOI.

Also read: Srikakulam stampede: Police bar entry into Kasibugga temple after 9 deaths

He added that he built the temple to help the devotees have free darshan of Lord Venkateswara without any hassle and not to see such incidents of death.

Panda's version was confirmed by witnesses who said the rush started after 9 pm and the volunteers present failed to control it, leading to the chaos. According to some, the temple's management failed to make a right estimate of the turnout since it was the first major festival that was being held at the new temple.

Local administration kept in dark

An NDTV report quoted Panda as saying that he did not care to inform the local administration about the Ekadashi event since the temple is located on his own land.

Panda and his family own huge tracts of land in and around Kasibugga, The Indian Express cited sources in the revenue department as saying. He built the temple on 12 acres. The newspaper also cited a temple official as saying that the shrine was built with only personal funds, and no public donation was sought.

Also read: Srikakulam temple stampede: What triggered the tragedy?

As a probe was launched into the tragedy, preliminary reports hinted that the surge in visitors on the auspicious occasion caused the fatal stampede. State Minister Nara Lokesh said an “unknown amount of rush” and “a lot of suffocation” were the reasons for the tragedy.

The Telugu Desam Party leader, who met the injured at a hospital in Srikakulam, said the temple had both entry and exit gates, but as the entry point was closed due to the rush, people tried to use the exit, which resulted in suffocation, and people tripped on the steps, resulting in a major stampede.

The minister said the majority of those who died were women and that the state government acted fast to save as many lives as possible.

Lapses found

Many lapses in the temple's crowd management mechanism, including a narrow passage leading to the main structure, came to the fore after the mishap. Sources in the Andhra government said while the temple has a capacity to accommodate between 2,000 and 3,000 people, nearly 25,000 turned up on the occasion of Ekadashi on Saturday.

Also read: Why SC transferred Karur stampede probe to CBI?

India has seen several incidents of stampedes in recent years. In 2025 so far, more than 110 people have reportedly died in such tragedies. On September 27, 41 people, including women and children, were killed in a stampede at a political rally in Karur in Tamil Nadu, triggering a major controversy over safety at public gatherings.