Kolkata Durga Puja stampede: CM Suvendu Adhikari orders probe into home guards’ role as 19 die

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday ordered an examination of the role of temporary home guards deployed at a Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata where a stampede on Saturday evening killed 19 people and injured 25Taking a dig at the previous Trinamool Congress TMC government Adhikari also claimed that his administration had inherited a ldquobaggage of rubbishrdquo from the erstwhile regime adding that cleaning up the system would take time PTI reportedThe stampede occurred at the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata amid a surge in crowds during rain on Saturday eveningTemporary home guards under scannerAdhikari said he had sought the list of temporary home guards deployed at the pandal to examine their role in the incident He said the personnel were not new recruits and had been deployed for the third consecutive year having served in 2024 and 2025 as wellThe chief minister also said that one of the home guards he tried to speak to during his visit to the site on Sunday morning ldquocould not even understand let alone speak BengalirdquoldquoWe are carrying on our shoulders a massive pile of rubbish as baggage A cleanup will take timerdquo Adhikari said PTI reportedSingle entryexit point may have worsened crowd surgeAdhikari said his assessment of the incident changed after visiting the site compared with the initial briefing he had receivedHe said the stampede occurred at the common entry and exit gate rather than inside the dimly lit puja pandal He added that the consequences could have been even more severe had the incident occurred inside the pandalAccording to the chief minister the venue had a single opening serving as both the entry and exit with home guards using a handheld rope to separate the two flows of peopleAdhikari alleged that when it began to rain the home guards dropped the ropes and took shelter to avoid getting drenched He suggested that the lack of separate entry and exit arrangements contributed to the crowd surge spiralling out of controlOrganisers police and fire services also under scrutinyAdhikari said the role of the puja organisers and the authorities responsible for issuing permissions would also be investigatedldquoThe organisers will also have to shoulder responsibilityrdquo he said adding that the theme and arrangements at the venue also needed scrutiny PTI reportedThe chief minister said the Kolkata Police and the fire services department which issued the required licences were also under the scanner for allegedly failing to ensure that the issues were addressed beforehandSIT to be headed by sitting Calcutta High Court judgeAdhikari said personnel from the Kolkata Police Kolkata Municipal Corporation and fire services department had been excluded from the Special Investigation Team SITHe said the SIT would be headed by a sitting judge of the Calcutta High Court subject to approval from the Chief JusticeSeven arrested in connection with stampedeThe Kolkata Police have arrested seven people including members of the Chorbagan Durga Puja organising committee in connection with the stampedeThose arrested include the committeersquos secretary and vicepresident as well as two employees of a private security agency among othersWith PTI inputs