The Indian Police Services (IPS) officers’ association has come out in support of former Superintendent of police of Datia Chandra Shekhar Solanki, who was suspended after a stampede that occurred near Ratangarh, a couple of months ago.
After no charge-sheet was issued to former district Collector Sanket Bhondawe, his suspension was revoked automatically. On the contrary, in case of the SP, charge-sheet has been issued to Solanki.
IPS association president Maithli Sharan Gupt told that generally, both Collector and SP are held responsible for any incident that takes place in the district. After the Collector has been reinstated, the Government should not consider the case of the SP, he added. A CBI team has reached here to begin investigation into the Ratangarh temple stampede in October which claimed 115 lives. The three-member CBI team, led by Deputy Superintendent of Police
AS Negi, reached here on Sunday and collected a copy of the FIR and other details from the police station.
Madhya Pradesh High Court had on November 12 ordered a CBI probe into the stampede in response to a Public Interest litigation which demanded an inquiry by the central agency.
As many as 115 people were killed and over 100 injured in the stampede near the Ratangarh temple on October 13 during Navratri festivities, which was triggered by rumours that the bridge over Sindh river the devotees were crossing was about to collapse. lakhs of devotees had converged at Ratangarh, 60 km from the district headquarters
and around 320 km from state capital Bhopal, to offer prayers at the Durga temple.