A stampede that killed dozens at a south India political rally happened after a crowd of thousands waited hours in baking heat without sufficient safeguards, officials and witnesses said Sunday.Some 27,000 people thronged a public road in Tamil Nadu state in hopes of seeing popular actor-turned-politician Vijay on Saturday, but panic broke out and 39 were killed, authorities said.Witnesses cited hours of delays, insufficient police presence and people falling from a tree branch onto the audience as contributing to the tragedy.Deadly crowd incidents happen repeatedly during mass gatherings in India, often blamed on lax safety measures. Vijay, known by one name, was addressing the rally when the crowds surged suddenly, forcing him to halt his speech in Karur district. Videos on social media showed him tossing water bottles to supporters shortly before the panic broke out.”My heart is shattered at this tragedy,” the 51-year-old star said in a statement. State Chief Minister M.K. Stalin told reporters on Sunday that 39 people had died, raising an earlier toll of 36.Nine children were among the dead, he added, announcing a judicial enquiry into the disaster.State police chief G. Venkataraman said crowds had been waiting for hours under hot sun without sufficient food and water after the public was informed that Vijay would arrive at the venue by noon.”The crowds started coming in from 11 am. He came at 7:40 pm. The people lacked sufficient food and water under the hot sun,” he told reporters.He added 10,000 people were expected but some 27,000 turned up.Vijay launched his own party in 2024 and has drawn huge crowds at campaign events ahead of state elections due next year.”I was pushed down by the crowd all of a sudden. There was absolutely no space to move,” B. Kanishka, a survivor, told the Hindu newspaper. “I subsequently fainted.” Others said poor organisation and an hours-long wait left people restless before the situation spiralled dangerously out of control.Karthick, a survivor, told the publication that the situation could have been prevented “if people were not forced to wait for hours together”.”Poor planning and execution of the programme and lack of police personnel at the spot were also the reason,” he said.The Indian Express newspaper said panic spread after supporters who had climbed onto a tree branch fell onto the crowd below.In January, 30 people were killed in a crush at a major religious fair, and last year 121 died during a Hindu prayer meeting in Uttar Pradesh.In July last year, 121 people were killed in northern Uttar Pradesh state during a Hindu religious gathering.

India’s remote high-altitude desert region of Ladakh has been in turmoil since four people were killed in violent protests demanding greater political autonomy for the Himalayan territory.Growing resentment with New Delhi’s direct rule over the territory, and fears of losing livelihoods boiled over on Wednesday as crowds took to the streets in the main city Leh, torching a police vehicle and the offices of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).Initially police said five people had died but later revised the toll to four.The sparsely populated region, home to some 300,000 people, borders both China and Pakistan and is a strategic enclave for India. Around half of Ladakh’s residents are Muslim and about 40 percent are Buddhist. AFP looks at some of the issues.Why are people protesting?Modi’s government split Ladakh off from Indian-administered Kashmir in 2019, imposing direct rule on both after cancelling the region’s partial autonomy.Since then, resentment has been growing in Ladakh over Delhi’s rule, with concerns about losing traditional livelihoods, land rights, and cultural identity.Residents say the end of semi-autonomy stripped them of protections over land, jobs, and resources.Decisions on development are made in Delhi and implemented by officials sent from outside, leaving the local elected council sidelined.”All the protections we had within Jammu and Kashmir were all gone,” lawyer Mustafa Haji told AFP.Who is leading the demonstrations?The Apex Body Leh, led by veteran leader Chering Dorjay, has become the main voice of the protesters.”We have been used like slaves,” Dorjay, 77, said, vowing to continue the struggle in the days to come.Wednesday’s demonstrations were also organised in solidarity with prominent activist Sonam Wangchuk, who had been on hunger strike for two weeks.New Delhi blamed the unrest on “provocative speeches” by Wangchuk who was detained by police on Friday.What are the core demands?The protesters are demanding protection of land rights and to stop outsiders from buying property in Ladakh.They also want constitutional autonomy under the “Sixth Schedule” of India’s constitution, which would allow a local legislature to make laws on land use and jobs.Constitutional protections sought by Ladakhis may seem far off, but sustained negotiations with New Delhi have yielded some “small victories”, Dorjay said.The government has already reserved 85 percent of jobs for locals and frozen acquisition of domicile status for Indians from outside Ladakh until 2036.But Dorjay says “there is a long way to go.”Why is land a sensitive issue?The government has announced large-scale solar projects and industrial plans in Ladakh that require thousands of acres of land. Locals fear this will endanger grazing grounds critical for pashmina goat herding, already under pressure from climate change and military buffer zones established with China. “The danger to this centuries-old livelihood undermining lives of thousands of pashmina goat herders is another issue now,” Dorjay said.Ladakh is heavily militarised, with Indian troops guarding its disputed borders with Pakistan and China.Tensions soared after deadly clashes with Chinese forces in 2020, and new buffer zones have further reduced land available to herders.”A situation where you don’t have any protection for your land and identity is not a happy one,” lawyer Haji said. How do Ladakhis view relationship with India?Unlike in Kashmir where opposition to Indian rule runs deep, Ladakhis have historically aligned with India, backing its troops in past conflicts with Pakistan and China. But many now say they feel betrayed. “For 70 years we have helped protect India’s borders,” Haji told AFP. “Now we want ourselves to be protected.”