Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], October 18 (ANI): Congress leader Suman Roy Chaudhuri on Sunday questioned the West Bengal government's reported death toll of 19 in the stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata, claiming that the actual number of deaths and injuries could be higher.

He also criticised the police administration, alleging that inadequate deployment of personnel contributed to lapses in crowd management.

'First of all, the figure of 19 deaths is according to the government. According to us and our sources, even more people have died than that, and there are more injured as well,' Chaudhuri told ANI.

Questioning the functioning of the police administration, Congress leader alleged that the West Bengal government used the police to intimidate political opponents instead of ensuring effective law enforcement during major public events.

'Running the government and controlling the police administration is one thing, and deploying the police administration for the right work is another thing. The government in Bengal uses the police to intimidate opponents,' Chaudhuri said.

Referring to the Durga Puja celebrations, he questioned the police arrangements at the pandal and said the police should have taken greater control of the event.

'Bengal has such a big festival-where is the police activity visible? What is the police doing? One thing is that the organisers definitely have some fault in this. The police should have taken full control of this puja, but the police is busy elsewhere,' he said.

Calling the incident unprecedented in recent decades, Chaudhuri added, 'In 20-30 years, such a big accident has never happened on the soil of Bengal. This is a sad thing.'

The stampede occurred at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata amid a massive rush of devotees, claiming 19 lives and leaving 25 others injured.

Following the incident, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday visited the injured undergoing treatment at an Apollo hospital in Kolkata.

Shah had earlier expressed condolences to the families of those killed and said he had spoken to Adhikari to take stock of the situation. He also postponed his scheduled programmes in West Bengal to visit the injured.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Police arrested seven people in connection with the incident. Those arrested include Raj Kumar Sewda, alias Raja, the secretary of the puja committee; Santanu Dubey, its vice-president; and Biplab Mukherjee, alias Joy, who was involved in the construction of a bamboo structure.

The other arrested persons include Koushik Saha, who was involved in crowd management and checking VIP passes; Pintu Dey, who was engaged in crowd management; and Suman Chakraborty and Rajesh Pal, who were working as private security in-charges.

Police registered a suo motu case under Sections 105, 110 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the organisers and others. Fourteen people were also detained for questioning, according to the police.

Meanwhile, Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, was imposed in parts of Kolkata from October 18 to 20 to prevent possible disturbances. The restrictions cover an area under Bowbazar Police Station bounded by College Street, CR Avenue, Collotola Street and Eden Hospital Road. The order prohibits unlawful assemblies of five or more people, carrying weapons and activities likely to disturb public peace and tranquillity.

The West Bengal government has announced compensation of Rs 25 lakh and a job for the family of each deceased person. An investigation by the Special Task Force (STF) has also been initiated to establish accountability.

The investigation into the circumstances leading to the stampede is underway. (ANI)