Three die, 28 injured at Durga Puja function

At least three devotees, in their 20s, were electrocuted and 28 injured when electric wires used for tapping power illegally fell on a Durga Puja marquee in Uttar Pradesh's Gorakhpur district early today, an official said.

At least three devotees, in their 20s, were electrocuted and 28 injured when electric wires used for tapping power illegally fell on a Durga Puja marquee in Uttar Pradesh's Gorakhpur district early on Monday, an official said.

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The wires snapped at around 12.30 am in the pandal put up at the Dharamshala crossing, some 300 km from Lucknow.

"The injured are being treated at the district hospital and several nursing homes. Most of them are out of danger," district magistrate Sanjay Kumar told IANS.

The electric wire that snapped fell on the iron pipes used in the marquee that came in contact with the devotees.

According to police, the organiser -- a businessman -- was absconding.

"Though there was a generator at the site, at the behest of the organiser the electricity drawn at the pandal was being illegally tapped," a senior police official told IANS.