At least seven people were killed and several were injured in a stampede that police suspect was triggered by a falling electricity pole that alarmed a crowd of worshippers at a temple in India's eastern state of Bihar, officials said on Monday.
The incident occurred early at Ashok Dham Temple in Lakhisarai district when a “rumour spread that a live wire had fallen on the devotees,” said Shailendra Kumar, a senior civil official.
“An electricity pole fell and a rumour spread that a live wire had fallen on the devotees. This triggered pressure on the women's queue and women fell on top of each other,” he said.
Kumar said seven devotees died and the exact number of injured is being ascertained.
"It is being said that an electric pole fell there and people were electrocuted, which led to a stampede-like situation," Shivam Kumar, a senior police officer, told news agency ANI. "We can tell you the exact reason only after verifying everything."
Television showed images of relatives thronging hospitals as rescuers brought in people on stretchers.
Bihar Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary wrote on X that “necessary instructions have been issued to the administration for the proper and expeditious treatment of the injured.”
India's history of crowd accidents includes 30 deaths at the giant Maha Kumbh festival last year, when tens of millions gathered to bathe in sacred waters.
