Kolkata pandal stampede kills 19; survivor recounts mother's death

Nineteen people died and around 25 were injured in a stampede at the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja pandal in Kolkata on Saturday evening, October 17, India Today reported, with inputs from PTI. The incident occurred around 7.40 pm in the Girish Park police station area.

Sonu Pal, 25, survived but lost his mother. In an account attributed to PTI, he described a sudden downpour that led people sheltering at the entrance to press further into the pandal while those inside were unwilling to step out into the rain.

Pal said the pressure became too much for those inside, causing people to fall on top of one another. He was trapped beneath the crowd but managed to regain his footing and reach his mother. By then, he said, she had died.

Families seek accountability

Police said all the injured were taken to Medical College and Hospital. Relatives speaking to reporters said they had been told to return at 10 am on Sunday to collect the bodies.

Sunny, identified as a neighbour of one of those killed, questioned who would accept responsibility and where the police and administration had been. Those questions reflect the families' demand for accountability; the survivor's description alone does not establish responsibility for the crowd conditions.