Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
Claim
Man forced to carry body of son, who died in the Tirupati temple stampede, for 90km on a motorcycle after he was refused an ambulance.
Fact
Video dates back to April 2022, when a man was forced to carry his son’s body on a two-wheeler after the ambulance drivers at the Sri Venkateswara Ramnarayan Ruia Government General (RUIA) hospital allegedly demanded a huge amount from him.
Several social media users are circulating a distressing 43-second video of a man carrying a child’s body out of a hospital before getting on a motorcycle, claiming it to be related to the stampede that broke out in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati on January 8, which has resulted in six deaths so far.
“A father could not even get an ambulance for his son’s body? The innocent child lost his life in the Tirupati accident,” read one such X post, while the text in the video read, “They asked Rs20,000 for an ambulance to transport a 12-year-old child who died in Tirupati Government Hospital. The child’s father carries his son 90km due to lack of money”.
Tirupati Temple Stampede
At least six devotees died and several others injured after a stampede broke out near Vishnu Nivasam in Andhra Pradesh’s Tirupati on Wednesday evening. The incident reportedly occurred close to the Tirumala Srivari Vaikuntha Dwara ticketing counter, during the distribution of ‘darshan’ tokens. Hundreds of devotees jostled for tickets for the 10-day Vaikunta Dwara Darshanam, which is set to begin on January 10.
Fact Check
Newschecker first ran a keyword search for “Tirupati stampede father son body ambulance”, which did not lead us to any credible news reports about such an incident.
We, however, came across this X post, dated April 26, 2022, by the official account of the New Indian Express Andhra Pradesh, sharing the same video. “A father was forced to take body of his son, who died of #kidney failure, on a motorcycle to his village 90km away from #Tirupati on Tuesday early hours, when private ambulance operator at #Ruia govt hospital refused to reduce their high price,” read the post. A similar tweet can be seen here.
The video was also shared by current Andhra Pradesh chief minister and then opposition leader CM N Chandrababu Naidu on April 26, 2022, criticising the crumbling state of the healthcare infrastructure under the previous YS Jagan Mohan Reddy administration.
“A man from Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh was forced to carry his son’s dead body on a two-wheeler after the ambulance drivers at Sri Venkateswara Ramnarayan Ruia Government General (RUIA) hospital allegedly demanded a huge amount from him. The incident took place on Monday night at RUIA government Hospital of Tirupati where a 10-year-old boy from Chitwel Mandal village of Annamayya district died after treatment,” read an India Today report, dated April 26, 2022, sharing a screengrab of the viral video.
“In an utterly inhumane incident, a syndicate of ambulance drivers at the government-run Ruia Hospital in Tirupati demanded over Rs 10,000 from a farm labourer to transport his dead child’s body to their village just 90 km away…The 10-year-old from Chitvel in neighbouring Annamayya District boy was admitted to the Sri Venkateshwara Ramnarain Ruia Government General Hospital a few days back for treatment of kidney and liver ailments. He died on Monday night,” read a Deccan Herald report, dated April 26, 2022
Similar reports can be seen here and here, confirming that the viral video is not related to the 2025 Tirupati temple stampede.
The Andhra Pradesh Police, too, put out a tweet on January 9, 2025, debunking the viral video, clarifying that it is from an incident that occurred in Tirupati in 2022, not yesterday (January 8).
Also Read: 2013 Photo From Bihar Falsely Shared As Delhi Govt School Classroom
Conclusion
2022 video of man forced to carry his son’s body on a motorcycle from a Tirupati hospital falsely linked to January 2025 temple stampede.
Result: False
Source
X post, TNIE, April 26, 2022
X post, N Chandrababu Naidu, April 26, 2022
India Today report, April 26, 2022
Deccan Herald report, April 26, 2022
X post, Andhra Pradesh Police, January 9, 2025
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Authors
Kushel HM is a mechanical engineer-turned-journalist, who loves all things football, tennis and films. He was with the news desk at the Hindustan Times, Mumbai, before joining Newschecker.
