NEW DELHI: A plea was lodged in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, calling for the formation of a five-member expert panel, supervised by a retired apex court judge, to investigate the catastrophic Hathras stampede incident that resulted in 121 fatalities.

The plea, submitted by advocate Vishal Tiwari, also demands that the Uttar Pradesh government file a status report on the July 2 incident and initiate legal proceedings against those responsible, including authorities and officials, for their alleged negligence.

Additionally, the petition seeks a directive for states to report on the availability of medical facilities from the block/Tehsil level to the district level to manage stampede incidents, and recommends guidelines to avert such tragedies in future mass gatherings.