KOLKATA: Kolkata Police on Sunday arrested seven people in connection with the stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojonin Durgotsab Samity Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata that claimed 19 lives and left 25 others injured. According to Kolkata Police, the arrested persons include Raj Kumar Sewda alias Raja (48), the secretary of the puja committee; Santanu Dubey (55), its vice-president; and Biplab Mukherjee alias Joy (48), who was engaged in the construction of a bamboo structure.
The other arrested persons have been identified as Koushik Saha (53), who was involved in crowd management and checking VIP passes; Pintu Dey (51), who was engaged in crowd management; and Suman Chakraborty (30) and Rajesh Pal (29), who were working as private security in-charges. Kolkata Police has registered a suo moto case under Sections 105, 110 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the organisers and others.
The West Bengal government has announced compensation of Rs 25 lakh and a job for the family of each victim. An investigation by the Special Task Force (STF) began to establish accountability for the incident.
Meanwhile, Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, has been imposed in parts of the city for three days, from October 18 to 20. (ANI)
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