The Calcutta High Court has told the West Bengal government that it cannot appoint a serving judge to lead an inquiry commission into the Chorbagan puja stampede that killed 19 people, but said the state may constitute a commission headed by a retired judge.
The court’s response came during a hearing on Tuesday after the state government requested the Chief Justice’s recommendation for a judicially led investigation. The request followed the deaths at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin puja pandal in Kolkata during the first Saptami evening of the festival.
According to the report, the stampede occurred amid heavy rain and large crowds when the gate of the puja pandal broke. Nineteen people died in the incident, which the report described as one of the biggest such disasters witnessed in Kolkata during the recent festive period.
Chief Minister Shuvendu Adhikari had directed that an inquiry commission be formed under the leadership of a judge. He had also said that representatives of the Kolkata Police, the fire services and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation should not be included in the investigation.
Acting on that direction, Chief Secretary Manoj Agrawal wrote to the Chief Justice on Monday, seeking the formation of a commission under the leadership of a judge recommended by the court. A public-interest litigation relating to the incident was also listed before the High Court.
During Tuesday’s hearing, Chief Justice R N Ghug referred to Supreme Court directions and said that a serving judge could not be appointed to such a commission. The Chief Justice also cited the limited availability of judges as a reason why a serving judge could not be assigned to the inquiry.
The court said the state government could instead establish a commission led by a retired judge of its choice. The response leaves the state with a route to proceed with a judicially headed inquiry, but not in the form originally sought through the appointment of a serving High Court judge.
The incident has raised questions about crowd control, access management and safety arrangements at large public gatherings held in dense urban neighbourhoods. The state’s stated decision to keep representatives of the police, fire services and municipal corporation out of the proposed commission is also part of the framework announced for the inquiry.
The High Court hearing has therefore clarified the legal constraint on the composition of the commission, while the responsibility for formally constituting an inquiry headed by a retired judge remains with the state government. The source report does not specify when the state will issue the formal order or name the retired judge.
