The “stampede-like situation”, whatever that means, at New Delhi Railway Station, which killed 20 people and injured many others, had multiple causes. But there is one factor that is largely ignored: the massive, non-stop high-voltage public relations campaign, over the last month, that has encouraged and exhorted people to visit the Maha Kumbh in Prayagraj.
Another ignored factor is the continuous news media coverage of the festival since it began on 13 January, often live, celebrating the event.
The Maha Kumbh is the holiest of holy occasions for Hindus; the arrangements to host the public have been extraordinary. Combine this with a mammoth public awareness outreach and you have a message going out, loud and clear: A ‘dubki’ in the river, at Sangam, is an absolute must for the faithful. Otherwise…
Otherwise, as the Tata Play DTH channel devoted to a live telecast from Prayagraj said, ‘If not now, then never’ (‘Abhi nahin toh kabhi nahin’)—that sounded almost like a threat.
Everything at the Maha Kumbh is bright, beautiful and sacred, so come, come come to Prayagraj—this open invitation could be the reason why official information about the NDLS stampede—as well as the one in Prayagraj where 30 people are known to have died—has been so misleading. This report in The Hindu explains the confusing messaging from the authorities after the New Delhi stampede.
Also read: 12 hours after Maha Kumbh stampede, TV news back to ‘unshakeable faith, excellent arrangement’
The PR blitz
The public relations campaign for the Maha Kumbh stops at nothing. Photographers and video crews have been everywhere—it was a now-or-never professional assignment for them, too.
Even as news of the stampede and loss of life trickled out late last Saturday night, promos by the Uttar Pradesh government continued to air across TV channels, describing the arrangements in Prayagraj and inviting people to visit. These promos have been running since the Kumbh began.
They include testimonials from visitors, including foreigners, which appeared on news channels like Republic TV.
Go through news websites and check newspapers from the past month—you’ll find Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath featured in advertisements for the Maha Kumbh. Alongside, promos declare: ‘Maha Kumbh 2025: Full coverage.’, (The Indian Express).
“UP govt has been advertising the millions expected in Prayagraj,” wrote The Times of India edit, ‘Crowds Are Us.’ (18 February)
Every day, TV reporters stationed in Prayagraj exclaim in awestruck tones: ‘… crore people have visited the Maha Kumbh today alone… crore took a dip in the holy river.”
The day after the Delhi stampede, Aaj Tak reported from Prayagraj: “On Day 36, ‘huge crowds…1 crore 20 lakh people took a dip…no reduction in numbers…” Zee Bharat said: “Fifty-two crore have taken a dip so far.”
We are constantly informed that there are crowds and crowds of people—and we saw them in the sweeping drone footage. News channels air countless interviews with visitors who express their appreciation and joy: “Bahut achcha laga…” is the catchphrase on their lips. They tell stories of travelling from far and wide for this special occasion.
You even had someone like author Amish Tripathi telling stories from the Maha Kumbh (NDTV India).
Then there are the VIP visits: on Tuesday, news channels like India Today ran headlines that Congress MP Rahul Gandhi “may take a holy dip.” The day after the stampede at New Delhi Railway Station, news channels gave prominence to Union Ministers such as Nitin Gadkari and Dharmendra Pradhan visiting Prayagraj.
We have watched countless other ministers and chief ministers pinch their noses and squat in the waters. PM Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah’s rituals went live for hours on news TV. President Droupadi Murmu was tracked from the moment she boarded a boat to take her dip.
With such an onslaught, few people could have not known about the Maha Kumbh and escaped its pull—even if it was simply for spiritual tourism.
Perhaps this is one reason crores have been racing to the holy city and why there was a ‘Crowd, Rush, Death’ (Times Now Navbharat)—it’s called ‘fear of missing out’. Hence, the unusually high demand for general train tickets at the railway station—a main cause of the stampede according to officials and the news media.
This FOMO has persisted despite stories in newspapers and on TV news of uncontrollable crowds at railway stations and on highways for the past few weeks. On 10 February, when the President went to Prayagraj, Hindi news channels like ABP News, Aaj Tak, and NDTV India reported traffic jams for hundreds of kilometres. We saw these crowds, just as social media posts have revealed the crush at New Delhi railway station on that fateful Saturday.
After the stampede on Saturday, The Hindu wrote, “While encouraging spiritual tourism, the hype around hosting 45 crore people… should be toned down…” (‘Mela and melee’, 18 February)
Also read: Delayed trains, rumours & mismanagement—how stampede unfolded at New Delhi railway station
Misinformation, public misled
The Delhi stampede, following the Prayagraj stampede on 29 January, saw history repeat itself as tragedy. In both cases, a lack of accurate information from authorities trivialised a terrible event.
Read the tweets below to see how officials—and at least one news agency—minimised or misled the public about the incident:
This is how seriously the state controlled media and the Railway minister took New Delhi Railway Station stampede.
But what happened really? 16 people have died, and these jokers didn't want people to believe this news. #NewDelhi #NewDelhiRailwaystation pic.twitter.com/2iEbHQhUdt
— Aayush Sharma (@JournoAayu) February 15, 2025
As per LNJP Hospital worker, injured and dead bodies were brought to the hospital from 10 PM onwards.
Indian Railways at 11:11 PM said “no stampede, it’s only a rumour”.
Even after one hour of the incident, Indian Railways denied the incident and called it a rumour. Why ?… pic.twitter.com/LCRHIbAK3M
— Arvind Gunasekar (@arvindgunasekar) February 16, 2025
Leaving the tweet screenshots from:
Northern Railway PRO
Railway Minister
LG, Delhi.
No control on coordination. pic.twitter.com/lP4lyCwPTV
— Priyanka Chaturvedi🇮🇳 (@priyankac19) February 15, 2025
And would someone like to explain what exactly is a “stampede-like situation”, as stated in this ANI report?
Only after PM Modi tweeted, ANI accepted that it was a Stampede. Until then, They quoted sources who said it's a rumour or it's 'Stampede like situation'. pic.twitter.com/dgmbUiPCR3
— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) February 15, 2025
A journalist on Lallantop reminded us, “Either there is a stampede, or there is not a stampede. There’s no such thing as a ‘stampede-like situation’.”
Apart from confusing the public about the sequence of events at New Delhi Railway Station, authorities denied reporters access to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, where victims were taken— as reported by a Dainik Bhaskar reporter.
So basically the media is banned from entering inside the LNJP hospital where the injured have been taken. What is the government trying to hide? Telling @smaurya_journo on the spot. #NewDelhiRailwaystation pic.twitter.com/tnqnwJwlpm
— Shivangi Saxena (@shivangi441) February 15, 2025
Of course, patients cannot be interviewed in such situations but doctors could have been accessible. Otherwise, people will watch and believe public testimonials such as one where a woman claimed there were “…countless dead…” inside the hospital—“Four-four on a bed…”
100 करोड़ लोगों को न्योता इसलिए दिया गया था? pic.twitter.com/uEtpwpR3G7
— Srinivas BV (@srinivasiyc) February 16, 2025
The author tweets @shailajabajpai. Views are personal.
(Edited by Prashant)