West Bengal: 6 Dead, 2 Injured as Car Crashes into Pilgrims

KOLKATA: At least six people were killed and two others were injured when a car crashed into a group of pilgrims in the Darjeeling district of West Bengal. The accident happened on Monday morning at Muni tea estate near Bagdogra, within the Phansidewa block.

Reports indicate that the pilgrims, a group of 12, were taking part in the Kanwar Yatra during the holy month of Sawan and were on their way to Junglee Baba Bholenath Temple when a car coming from Deogarh collided with them.

Six people died on the spot, and two were seriously injured. The other four survived because they had stayed behind to drink water.

Police quickly arrived, collected the bodies, and sent them for an autopsy. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital.

The police are investigating the accident, and more details will be provided later.

Meanwhile, at least seven people, including five women, died, and nine others were injured in a stampede while heading to the Baba Siddheshwarnath Temple on Barabar hills in Jehanabad, Bihar, late Sunday night.

The stampede happened around 12:30 a.m. as the devotees were climbing the hills to offer prayers at the temple in the Makhdumpur area of Jehanabad.

Some local residents attributed the incident to poor crowd management and the police's use of batons. They mentioned that common routes were used by people both visiting and returning from the temple.

As the number of devotees grew in anticipation of the fourth Monday of the Saawan month, the police struggled to manage the crowd and resorted to a baton charge, which, according to Suman Kumar, a relative of one of the injured devotees, might have led to the stampede.

Jehanabad District Magistrate Alankrita Pandey confirmed that seven people had died and stated that they were investigating the cause of the incident. She added that the injured were being treated at the Jehanabad hospital.

ALSO READ:

ALSO WATCH: