PRAYAGRAJ, June 9 -- A vacation bench of the Allahabad high court has come down on the state government over a delay in disbursing ex gratia to the families of those who died in a stampede at the Mahakumbh on January 29. The court also sought detailed affidavits disclosing all deaths and the details of the medical handling of victims between January 28, 2025, and the conclusion of the mega fair. The court also ordered disclosure of the number of claims received, settled and pending, highlighting the state's responsibility as trustee of its citizens. Terming the state's conduct "untenable" and reflective of "apathy to the plight of the citizen", the court said once the government had announced compensation, it was its "bounden duty" to ensure timely and dignified payment. The court also expressed concerns over a dead body of the stampede victim at the Mahakumbh being handed over to the family without any autopsy or post mortem by the state-run Motilal Nehru Medical College, Prayagraj. Hearing a writ petition filed by one Uday Prtap Singh, a division bench comprising justice Saumitra Dayal Singh and justice Sandeep Jain on Friday directed to put up this case as fresh on July 18, 2025. The petitioner had sought compensation, saying that he was the husband of a victim who had succumbed to her injuries during the stampede. The court directed the state authorities to consider the claim of the petitioner on its own merit on the strength of the petition and a copy of the petition be treated as a copy of representation. The court also directed impleadment of multiple medical institutions and authorities in Prayagraj as parties to the petition and directed them to file affidavits disclosing all deaths and medical handling of victims between January 28, 2025 and the end of the mela. The court said the affidavits must disclose full facts (date-wise) of all patients and dead bodies that may have been brought to those facilities and of dead bodies dispatched by them. jitendra sarin...