Kolkata: Nineteen people died and 25 were injured in a stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin pandal in north Kolkata on October 17, around 7.40 pm. Three days later, the political argument has shifted from the tragedy to the videos of it.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, who visited victims' families on Tuesday, said fake videos of the incident were being made viral from Bangladesh and shared by some people in Bengal. "There are 135 such people. I have asked police to book those people in non-bailable sections," he said.
Hours earlier, the West Bengal Police's Special Task Force arrested a man from Cooch Behar district for allegedly spreading misinformation about the toll. Adhikari said he had set up an SIT and would not interfere with it. "We are getting consent of a retired judge to probe the tragedy," he said, adding that the committee includes the Principal Secretary of the Disaster Management Department, Bengal Police and the NDRF, and will recommend measures for next year's Durga Puja.
The opposition TMC has pressed the other side of the case. MP Abhishek Banerjee questioned why BJP leaders holding key posts in the puja committee had not been arrested. He said the Chief Minister's nephew was the committee's chief patron, with BJP north Kolkata district president Tamoghna Ghosh and party MLA Bijay Ojha in key positions. "Why are the bereaved families still awaiting justice?" he asked, alleging that police were instead harassing citizens who questioned the government.
Adhikari also defended moving some injured to a private hospital, saying it had better facilities and helped save lives.
The inquiry and the argument over social media have raised the political temperature in Kolkata. Compensation of Rs 25 lakh has been announced for victims' families, and some of the injured are being treated in a private hospital. Officials said lessons on crowd control will be drawn for next year's Durga Puja.