Kolkata’s Durga Puja crowd safety debate has intensified after BJP MLA Kaustav Bagchi called for theme-based pujas and large-scale celebrations to be discontinued following the deaths of 19 people at a pandal in north Kolkata’s Chorbagan area.
Bagchi, the MLA from Barrackpore, made the remarks while reacting to the incident at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durgotsav Committee’s puja pandal. According to Sangbad Pratidin, he said next year’s celebrations should follow a more traditional and restrained format, with rituals conducted in what he described as a “sattvic” manner.
The incident took place on Saturday evening, during Saptami, when a stampede at the puja venue led to 19 deaths and left several people injured. The report said discussions had begun over responsibility for the disaster, while the puja organisers and several others had already been arrested.
Bagchi attributed the scale of the incident to the emphasis on elaborate themes and large crowds. He called for an end to what he described as the dominance of theme-based pandals and urged organisers to stop turning Durga Puja into a spectacle marked by excessive excitement and experimentation.
“Puja should be held in accordance with sattvic values. From next year, it should be a puja completely for Sanatanis. Such incidents are happening because of the intimidation and dominance of themes,” Bagchi was quoted as saying. He added that traditional pujas continued to attract visitors, while acknowledging that theme pujas remained important to some middle-aged people.
The MLA also said that without the dominance of themes, so many people would not have died. He referred to experimentation involving the idol of Goddess Durga and the pandal as a factor that, in his view, contributed to the circumstances surrounding the disaster.
The reported comments place the focus on the design and presentation of puja venues, but the available account does not establish the operational cause of the stampede. It does not provide details on the number of people inside the venue at the time, the crowd-control arrangements, emergency exits, police deployment, entry and exit restrictions or the findings of any official inquiry.
The incident has therefore also raised questions about how major religious gatherings are managed in dense urban neighbourhoods during Kolkata’s festival season. Any determination of responsibility will depend on the investigation into the venue’s arrangements, the actions of the organisers and the response of the authorities.
The report said arrests had already been made as the investigation continued. No further official findings or next steps were provided in the supplied account.
