As the death toll from the Haj stampede at Mina rises to 717, nine pilgrims from Gujarat are among the 14 Indians The number of Indian casualties in Thursday’s Haj stampede climbed to 14 Friday. At least 13 Indians were also injured in the worst tragedy to hit the annual pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia in 25 years, which claimed 719 lives. According to a list released by Indian Haj Mission, nine of the Indians who died were from Gujarat. The rest were from Tamil Nadu (2), Jharkhand (2) and Kerala. [related-post] Meanwhile, 19 pilgrims from Kerala were reported missing. Neither the state government nor the Haj committee has any information about them. Sources, however, said it is too early to conclude if they were injured or killed. Several pilgrims from Gujarat were also untraceable since the stampede in Mina. More than 1.5 lakh Indians took part in this year’s Haj. “Our consul general in Jeddah reports loss of 14 Indian lives in stampede,” External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted. “The exact number will be known after confirmation by Saudi authorities,” she added. A family at Noore Buran Society in Ahmedabad’s Juhapur lost two members, even as their efforts to contact other five on Haj remained futile. Another family in the same society reported three of its members missing. The Nagori family lost Johrabibi (75) and her niece Ruksanabano Nagori (62) in the stampede. “My elder brother aged 35 years, his wife and aunt are missing. Two other relatives are also missing,” said one of the family members. Their neighbours have been trying to reach Fatima Mansuri, her elder son Yunus and his wife Kulsum since the stampede in Mina. “The last time we spoke to them was on Sunday when they left for the prayers. They said they would leave their mobiles behind. All others who went with them have returned safely. So far, none have seen them or heard from them,” said Munir Mansuri, Fatima’s younger son. Two persons from nearby Hariyali society were also reported to be missing. In Vadodara’s Mogulwada area, Irfan Mansuri, who runs a medical store, said there was no news about his father Mohammed Rafiq Ghulam Mansuri , mother Salma and sister Hasna after the mishap. “My parents are unreachable since the incident. Along with them, 33 other people, who travelled with the same tour operator, are also unreachable. Today, on Bakr-Eid, we only pray for their safety,” Irfan said. However, secretary of Gujarat Haj Committee Usman Patel said, “We have received confirmation of nine deaths as well as one injured person from Gujarat. Out of those who travelled through the Haj Committee quota, no other pilgrims have so far reported about any missing relatives. We do not have records of those who have travelled through private tour operators.” [With PTI inputs]
