5,000 Idol worshippers, and chaos

Shivangi Saxena, a Class XII student of SSC Convent School in Noida, felt the heat rising as the day wore on and the line outside the venue grew longer at the audition for the Indian Idol TV show on Tuesday. Finally, she fell unconscious. She had to be taken to an ambulance waiting near the venue — Expocentre at Noida’s Sector-62.

As the crowd grew to around 5,000, so did desperation levels, leading to a stampede outside the venue. The heavy police presence averted a major mishap — besides the Quick Reaction Team, additional police force was also called in to control the crowd.

Two participants, Manamrit and Daniel, had to be taken to Fortis Hospital after they were injured in the stampede. According to reports, six persons were injured in the melee.

Superintendent of Police (City) Ashok Tripathi said the organisers had sought permission to hold a session to be attended by only 150 persons. A senior officer said the police are still deciding whether to file a case against the organisers.