The police have arrested seven people, including organisers, after a stampede at a Durga Puja pandal killed 19 people and injured dozens others in Kolkata on Saturday evening.
Chorbagan Durga Puja committee’s Secretary, Raj Kumar Sewda, and Vice President, Santanu Dubey, were among those arrested, besides Biplab Mukherjee, who was engaged in construction of the bamboo structure, Koushik Saha and Pintu Dey, who were responsible for controlling crowd, and private security incharges Suman Chakraborty and Rajesh Pal.
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has said that an announcement by the organisers of the community Durga Puja at Chorbagan led to a rush among the revellers, causing the “painful incident”. “According to initial reports by the officials at the spot, the incident occurred owing to an announcement on the loudspeaker by the puja organisers,” he told reporters after meeting the injured people at the Kolkata Medical College and Hospital.
