The casualty figure remained unconfirmed after a reported Kolkata Durga Puja stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin pandal on Muktaram Babu Street, where a sudden spell of rain triggered a rush among thousands of visitors on Saptami evening. Television channels, citing hospital sources, reported that at least 17 people were feared dead, while around 25 to 30 injured visitors were taken to Calcutta Medical College and Hospital, many of them said to be in critical condition.
The Telegraph report said the Kolkata Police and the Kolkata Municipal Corporation had not confirmed the toll and told television reporters that they were checking what had happened. The number of casualties could not be independently established from the material supplied, and several injured people were reportedly still being brought to hospital when the report was published.
The Chorbagan Sarbojanin puja is located along a narrow stretch with lanes leading towards the main pandal. According to accounts cited in the report, many visitors gathered outside rushed into the pandal to take shelter after the rain began. People already inside then found it difficult to move out, while those caught in the open attempted to push through the crowd.
The resulting surge reportedly caused people to tumble over one another on a makeshift staircase. The pandal had an iron structure beneath which the Durga idol was installed, and a portion of that structure was suspected to have collapsed, although this detail had not been officially confirmed. The incident was believed, on the basis of accounts available at the time, to have unfolded within five to seven minutes.
The report described the public exit as uneven and varying from about 10 feet to 30 feet in width. One lane was apparently restricted for VIP movement, while adjoining Parbati Ghosh Lane was reportedly closed. A visitor alleged that ambulances were not allowed through the lane and that police personnel had left the area, after which local residents attempted to rescue people trapped in the crowd. These accounts require confirmation by the police and civic authorities.
A visitor quoted in the report said three friends accompanying him fell to the ground and that he and others tried to pull them out. Police sources said efforts were under way to identify the deceased and injured, many of whom were believed to have travelled from districts outside Kolkata.
The state chief minister, Suvendu Adhikari, visited the site and later the Medical College hospital, as did state health minister Saradwat Mukherjee, according to the report. Adhikari said a full and transparent investigation would be conducted and that the puja committee members and security agencies had been detained. He also said support would be provided to the families affected.
The chief minister further said a preliminary inquiry indicated that the crowd surge followed an announcement by the puja committee, after a police officer told organisers that the announcement had caused people to jostle. That account was presented as preliminary and had not been supported by a formal investigation report in the supplied material.
Kolkata Police shut down the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja after the incident. The organising committee members were not seen at the pandal, according to the report. The Kolkata Police Lalbazar Control Room opened two helplines — 180034556782 and 033-22141310 — for information and assistance.
The incident follows earlier crowd-control concerns at major Kolkata puja venues. The Sreebhumi Sporting Club puja was shut down in 2021 after three people were grievously injured in a stampede-like situation, while a near-stampede at Deshapriya Park in 2015 injured around 11 people and led to the puja being shut down.
Former Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee expressed shock and sadness and prayed for the injured, while Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee called for an investigation and accountability. The casualty count, the precise sequence of events, the alleged structural collapse and the responsibility of the organisers and security agencies remain subject to official confirmation.
