What happened at Phulrai village in Hathras is nothing less than absolute tragic, as more than 100 people were killed after a stampede broke out at a religious event by a self-styled godman, Bhole Baba aka Narayan Saakar Hari.

While the actual cause for the stampede that left at least 116 people dead at a satsang near Phulrai village in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh will be known only after a probe, officials cite various reasons - from "extreme humidity" to "rush of devotees to touch the feet of the godman" -that could have triggered the chaos at the first place.

Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh said that prima facie it appeared that the stampede took place when devotees tried to seek the blessings of Narayan Sakar Vishwa Hari or Bhole Baba.

Apparently, it was a kind of 'pratha' (ritual), where the godman's followers touch his feet and collect "pair ki dhool" as a blessing after the satsang.

Singh also pointed out that the number of people present at the venue exceeded much more than the permitted limit.

Some eyewitnesses said that after the satsang ended, hundreds of followers rushed towards Bhole Baba to touch his feet or see him closely as the godman left in his car, as reported by IndianExpress.

Officials said there were 78 members in the organising team. They were from Sikandrarao tehsil and included a school principal, teachers, engineer, lekhpal among others.