Kolkata Police have arrested seven people, including two office-bearers of the Chorbagan Durga Puja committee, in connection with a stampede at a north Kolkata puja pandal that claimed at least 19 lives and left 25 others injured.
A senior police officer confirmed the arrests on October 18. Police have also registered a suo motu case of culpable homicide not amounting to murder as investigators examine the circumstances surrounding Saturday evening’s tragedy.
The incident occurred when a sudden surge of people amid rainfall triggered chaos at the crowded pandal, leading to a deadly crush.
Fourteen people were initially detained on Saturday night. Of them, seven have since been arrested, while police indicated that further arrests could follow as the investigation progresses.
Those arrested include Chorbagan Puja committee secretary Rajkumar Seoda and vice-president Shantanu Dubey. Biplab Mukhopadhyay, who was responsible for installing the bamboo structure at the pandal, has also been arrested, along with Kaushik Saha and Pintu De, who were assigned crowd management duties.
Two employees of a private security agency, Suman Chakraborty and Rajesh Pal, are among the other accused.
Investigators are examining the arrangements at the venue, including the installation of temporary structures and the measures taken to regulate the crowd. The probe aims to establish how the situation escalated and whether lapses in crowd management or other arrangements contributed to the tragedy.
Police said the process of identifying the deceased was underway, with post-mortem examinations scheduled to begin on Sunday.
The incident has raised questions about crowd safety and emergency preparedness at major Durga Puja gatherings. The investigation is expected to establish the sequence of events and determine responsibility for the deaths and injuries.