36 injured in Pakpatan shrine stampede

ISLAMABAD: At least 36 people sustained severe injuries in a stampede at a shrine in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province on Monday, local media reported.

According to a local TV channel, tens of thousands of devotees from across the country gathered in the shrine for a religious celebration in Pakpatan, a district in Punjab province, when the stampede took place.

The stampede was caused when police baton-charged those devotees who tried to cross the protective gate of the shrine, said the report.

All the injured have been shifted to a nearby hospital, where 16 of them are said to be in critical condition. Local authorities said that a case has been registered and investigations are underway.