Panic triggered by an announcement is suspected to have led to the fatal stampede at the Chor Bagan Durga Puja pandal of West Bengal’s Kolkata on October 17. Sanjib Raha, part of the organising committee of the Chor Bagan Durga Puja pandal, was arrested on Thursday for allegedly making the announcement over a loudspeaker that the pandal was about to collapse, triggering panic and the crowd-crush that killed 19 people during Durga Puja celebrations.
Another person, Kushal Majumdar, was detained for questioning on Friday after inquiries indicated that he too had made announcements on the day of the stampede, HT earlier reported. Raha was arrested in Nadia and brought to Kolkata. “[They had to] climb down the ramp before leaving the pandal. There was no second path. A police officer Raha was identified as the person who made the announcement that triggered the panic. “We are still piecing together the course of events that led to the stampede . One of the CCTV footage showed the two [arrested] persons making announcements. They were heard warning revellers that the pandal was collapsing and asking visitors to leave the place immediately. It appeared that the announcements triggered panic and a rush towards the exit point,” PTI news agency quoted an officer as saying.
Because someone announced that the pandal, of which the ramp was an integral part, was collapsing, “It seems people panicked and ran for safety. A police officer said that visitors had to use a five-feet-wide and seven-feet-high circular ramp to get a 360-degree view of the idol inside the pandal.
The officer said the ramp was intact during the police inspection.
Investigators tracked eight suspected mobile numbers to trace the accused as he was trying to contact family and friends using different numbers, he added.
Raha had switched off his mobile phone, according to the above-mentioned police officer.
With Raha and Majumdar being held, a total nine arrests have been made in the case. A six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the incident also identified a narrow exit point and dimly lit pathway as key areas of concern, even as Raha, the eighth accused in the case, was due to be produced before a court on Friday.
