The Calcutta High Court has directed the West Bengal government to establish a commission of inquiry headed by a retired High Court judge into the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal stampede that killed 19 people in Kolkata on October 17.
A Division Bench presided over by Chief Justice Ravindra V. Ghuge issued the direction during a special sitting on October 20. The court was hearing a public interest litigation petition filed by a lawyer seeking an independent and speedy investigation into the incident.
The Bench said a sitting High Court judge could not head the inquiry in view of a directive of the Supreme Court. The State government had proposed that a sitting judge lead the investigation, following an earlier statement by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari that a sitting High Court judge would head a Special Investigation Team to examine the stampede.
The court instead said the State government could appoint a retired judge of the High Court to head the commission. The inquiry is expected to examine the causes of the stampede and identify those responsible for the deaths at the Chorbagan pandal.
The stampede took place on the evening of October 17, during Saptami, the first day of the Durga Puja festival. According to the report, 19 people died in the incident. The deceased include 13 females, among them five minors, while three other victims were male minors.
The court proceedings followed preliminary accounts concerning crowd movement and management at the pandal. Kolkata Police have said that mismanagement and confusing announcements contributed to the incident. The police assessment was based on circumstantial evidence and accounts from local residents and eyewitnesses, according to the report.
The incident has raised questions about how large religious and cultural gatherings are managed in dense urban neighbourhoods during festival periods. Crowd-control arrangements, public announcements, entry and exit routes, emergency access and coordination between organisers and civic agencies are among the operational issues that the inquiry will be able to examine through formal proceedings.
The High Court’s direction separates the inquiry commission from the State government’s earlier proposal for a sitting-judge-led investigation. It also places the responsibility for selecting a retired High Court judge with the West Bengal government. The commission’s mandate will include examining the immediate cause of the stampede and determining responsibility for the incident.
