West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday chaired a high-level meeting at Bhabani Bhawan and announced that he will visit families of those killed in the Durga Puja pandal stampede to hand over compensation cheques on October 20 and 21.

He also informed that personnel from the Kolkata Police, Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), State Fire Services Department have been kept out of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe their role in the stampede. According to him, one out of 19 dead was from Bihar.

“One of the 19 deceased is from Bihar. The process of handing over the bodies has begun. Two of the injured admitted to the ICU have suffered bone fractures, while the remaining 23 are fit for discharge. I will visit the family of every deceased person within two days and personally hand over the compensation cheque,” said CM Adhikari.

He continued, “After an incident like this, the necessary precautions should be taken. This is a large state with a population of 10.5 to 11 crore, and everyone is celebrating the puja festival. We must ensure the safety of others. The lapses have been reviewed. Of the 19 people who died, 18 were residents of West Bengal. For every deceased person, a team comprising a civil administration official, a police administration official and the local MLA will stay with the family until the cremation.”

On the arrangements at the puja pandal, CM Adhikari said, “These are people (civic volunteers) recruited in 2024-25. They (the administration) hire people every year, and this time they were taken from the old list. No new person was brought in. We have asked for the list, and it should be scrutinised. It would not be right to blame them without examining the facts. It started raining, and the rope was released. There were no proper two-lane arrangements there. A temporary passage had been created using ropes, forming a chain. That chain broke, and everyone got mixed up.”

Elaborating on the steps that have been taken so far following the incident, CM Adhikari said, “Seven individuals have been arrested and are currently in police custody under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The Governor visited the hospital, as did the Union Home Minister. I am personally monitoring the situation with the assistance of the Chief Secretary, the Commissioner of Police, the Home Secretary, the Director General of Police (DGP), and others. The entire government is actively engaged. We are not celebrating the holiday, nor are we posting anything on social media. We are not making statements to the press assigning blame to others.”

The Chief Minister further said, “An SIT (Special Investigation Team) is also being formed, which will operate under the leadership of a sitting judge. The Chief Secretary will write to the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court. If permission is granted, we will constitute the SIT as soon as possible.”

CM Adhikari added that on October 26, during the Bijaya Sammilani event, the government will pay tribute to the 19 people who lost their lives and cheques of Rs 5 lakh each will also be handed over to the families of the 25 injured people at the same event.

The police on Sunday arrested seven people, including organisers, in connection with the stampede at the Chorebagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja Pandal in Kolkata, which claimed 19 lives.

A large number of devotees were injured following a stampede at the Chorebagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata as an excessive crowd flocked into the pandal arena to catch a glimpse of the idols. Chaos erupted at the Puja pandal after a portion of the exit gate structure collapsed. The injured were immediately rushed to Calcutta Medical College and Hospital and two other state hospitals. About 17 people were declared brought dead at Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, while 25 injured were admitted for treatment. The death toll reached 19 on Sunday.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team investigating the Ankita Bhandari murder case reached the residence of Urmila Sanawar, the alleged wife of former BJP MLA Suresh Rathore, in Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur on Sunday.

A four-member CBI team, including a woman officer, reached Sanawar’s residence to question her regarding the high-profile case.

Earlier this week, Sanawar had participated in a press conference in New Delhi, alongside Bhandari’s parents.

Sanawar, through a video message, had also demanded that the CBI must interrogate her in the presence of the media since the investigation is not happening under the watch of a sitting Supreme Court judge.

This comes a day after the CBI questioned former BJP MLA Rathore at the Shivalik Guest House in Uttarakhand’s Haridwar.

The CBI took over the probe into the Ankita Bhandari murder case in February this year. Its Delhi-based Special Crime Branch had registered a case against an “unknown VIP” in connection with the matter.

The case had returned to the spotlight early this year after viral audio clips and videos surfaced involving Sanawar.

During a Facebook Live session, Sanawar made references to the alleged involvement of a VIP in the murder, triggering fresh controversy and public debate.

These developments led to heightened political tensions, with Opposition parties and several organisations renewing demands for a CBI enquiry into the case.

Responding to the growing pressure and to address public concerns, the Uttarakhand government moved swiftly to ensure transparency. On January 9, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami formally recommended a CBI investigation.

The murder of Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist, sparked widespread outrage across Uttarakhand in 2022. She was working as a receptionist at the Vanantra Resort when she was murdered on September 18, 2022. Her body was dumped in the Chilla Shakti Canal and recovered nearly a week later.

Following an extensive investigation by a Special Investigation Team, a 500-page charge sheet was filed in the case, naming 97 witnesses, out of whom 47 testified before the court.

The prime accused, Pulkit Arya, the owner of Vanantra Resort, along with co-accused Saurabh Bhaskar and Ankit Gupta, were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. Arya was found guilty on multiple serious charges, including murder, tampering with evidence, harassment, and immoral trafficking.

Meanwhile, several activists and the Congress have been organising protests in Uttarakhand and Delhi over the appointment of BJP leader Dushyant Gautam as the Governor of Sikkim.

Earlier this week, Bhandari’s parents staged a sit-in at India Gate, demanding a stop to Gautam’s appointment as Governor. Later, along with Garhwal BJP MP Anil Baluni, they met the CBI officials.

Bhandari’s parents have also demanded that the government put the appointment on hold till the CBI probe is underway. They have urged the government to work towards ensuring that all those guilty of their daughter’s murder face strict punishment.

Five people were killed and five others critically injured in two separate road accidents in West Burdwan district Durgapur on Sunday, police said.

The two accidents took place on National Highway 19 in Durgapur.

DCP, East, of Asansol-Durgapur Police Commissionerate, Raspreet Singh said, “Five people have died so far in two accidents in Durgapur this morning. Several have been admitted to the hospital. They are undergoing treatment.”

In the first incident, a bike hit the back of a truck at high speed, while in the second incident, a four-wheeler rammed into a bus from the rear.

According to the police, in the first case, a bike, being ridden by two young men and a woman, was heading towards Piala from the direction of Bhiringi intersection in Durgapur, when the speeding two-wheeler lost control and hit the back of a truck in front of it.

The impact of the incident was so great that all three riders on the bike were thrown in different directions. They were rescued with serious injuries and taken to Durgapur Sub-district Hospital. However, they died at the hospital.

Locals alleged that the bike was coming so fast that its front wheel fused with the back of the truck. Later, the police removed the bike and the truck by pulling them apart with a crane. The speed of the bike at the time of the accident and whether the three riders were drunk are being investigated. The bodies of the three have been sent for autopsy.

In the other incident, a four-wheeler hit the back of a bus while entering the Andal crossing service road on National Highway 19 from Durgapur to Asansol. According to the police, there were seven people in the car, including the driver. Two died on the spot, and the remaining five were rescued and taken to Bidhannagar Hospital in critical condition. It is learnt that the passengers were returning from a cultural event.

The police have started an investigation to find out how the car hit the back of the bus and how the driver lost control of the car.