KARACHI, July 8: Two women died and another suffered injuries in a stampede during the distribution of free ration at a marriage hall in Gulshan-i-Iqbal on Monday, police and witnesses said.

Around 3,000 to 4,000 women had arrived at the Al Nisa Club where its owner had arranged the annual ration distribution for up to 250 underprivileged families.

“Everyone wanted to get the handouts and scrambled for it, resulting in a stampede,” said Gulshan SHO Irfan Ahmed Khan. In the stampede, two women died and one received injuries, he said.

“The deceased have been identified as 25-year-old Uzma Atif and 35-year-old Nusrat Malik Altaf,” he said. “We have decided to register an FIR against the organisers on a charge of negligence,” the officer said, adding that police had not been informed about the distribution of food in advance.