Bhubaneswar, July 25 -- The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Friday demanded a judicial probe into the alleged crowd management failures during the Rath Yatra and Bahuda Yatra after a 57-year-old devotee died and several others fell ill following a crowd surge during the Bahuda Yatra in Puri.
The opposition party said all casualties linked to crowd control lapses during the twin festivals should be investigated through a judicial inquiry to fix accountability, identify those responsible and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents in future.
The devotee reportedly died of suffocation after a sudden crowd surge near Devi Subhadra's chariot on Puri's Grand Road during the return car festival. He was rushed to the District Headquarters Hospit...