Devotees hurt in rush at Ujjain's Mahakal temple complex

Some devotees reportedly suffered minor injuries on Monday amid a heavy rush at the Nagchandreshwar Temple in the Mahakaleshwar Temple complex in Ujjain on the occasion of Nag Panchami though authorities denied any stampede-like incident occurred at the site.

Videos circulating on social media and reports by news apps showed some devotees receiving treatment at local health facilities in the Madhya Pradesh city for injuries.

The Nagchandreshwar Temple inside the complex opens only once a year on Nag Panchami. The shrine opened for devotees at midnight on Sunday and will close at same time on Monday.

The Ujjain district administration denied any stampede-like incident at the complex, which receives hundreds of devotees everyday.

"I appeal to you all not to be carried away by any rumours and misleading news. All is fine and devotees were having darshans. No stampede or chaos has prevailed (at the Nagchandreshwar Temple)," Ujjain Collector Raushan Singh said in a video message.

Mahakaleshwar Temple Management Committee administrator Pratham Kaushik said the situation at the temple complex was 'normal'.

In a video message, Kaushik, who is also the additional collector of Ujjain, said, "On the occasion of Nag Panchami, darshan at the Shri Nagchandreshwar Temple in the Mahakaleshwar Temple is continuing smoothly."

He claimed some misleading news reports had been circulated by certain media outlets and on social media platforms.

"It is important to clarify that no such incident has occurred at the temple. All devotees are peacefully having darshan at the temple," Kaushik insisted.

Kaushik said a very large number of devotees were visiting the Nagchandreshwar Temple, located on the top floor of the Mahakaleshwar Temple, on the occasion of Nag Panchami, which coincided with Shravan Somwar.

He said more than six lakh devotees had offered prayers at the Nagchandreshwar Temple and over two lakhs had visited the Mahakaleshwar Temple by noon on Monday.

The temple committee had made adequate arrangements and provided facilities for devotees, he said.

Meanwhile, Ujjain witnessed heavy crowds on Monday as tens of thousands of devotees flocked to the ancient city for darshan. Roads leading to the temple town were witnessing frequent traffic jams amid the heavy influx of devotees.  -- PTI