Relatives of 38-year-old Pinky Devi, who died in a stampede at the New Delhi Railway Station, mourn her death, at Sangam Vihar in New Delhi on Sunday.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Family members of several stampede victims on Sunday alleged that they were left to search for their missing loved ones alone.

Bhola Sah, a Delhi resident, has been running to hospitals and mortuaries since Sunday night. His wife, Meena Devi, 45, who was at the New Delhi railway station to board a train to Prayagraj, has been missing after the stampede.

He is showing her photo on his mobile phone to anyone he thinks can provide leads to her whereabouts. Mr. Sah said he had searched the railway station, hospitals, and mortuaries in vain.

“She left at 6 p.m., and I have not been able to contact her ever since… the hospital authorities told me that there are no bodies in mortuaries as all have been handed over…I don’t know what to do,” Mr. Sah said.

“Her 4-5 companions are also untraceable, and their mobile numbers are not connecting,” he added.

Since Sunday morning, several people have been searching for their family members in hospitals and mortuaries. Some of them are not from Delhi and came to the Capital after hearing the news.

Sangeeta Malik’s family stood firm outside the Ram Manohar Lohiya Hospital mortuary to understand the paperwork to get the body released and return to Bhiwani in Haryana for the last rites.

“We spent the whole night searching for her at various hospitals, only to find her body here….we were given no information. We recognised her after visiting the mortuary,” her relatives complained.

A native of Chhapra, Bihar, Sheela Devi, who was at Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital to collect her relative Poonam’s body, echoed similar sentiments. “We did not receive any proper information. I got to know that the bodies have been kept here. We came looking and found her body,” Ms. Sheela said.

Sanjay, who was at the LNJP hospital to collect her sister Pinky Devi’s body, said, “Fifteen members of our family were to board a train to Prayagraj. While we were climbing down the station’s staircase to reach the platform, the stampede happened, and my sister was crushed to death.”

“The deaths happened due to negligence. The higher-ups should take responsibility. Why was there so much confusion? Why the information was not given accurately?” said Sanjay, whose wife sustained injuries.