Union Home Minister Amit Shah is scheduled to visit people injured in the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal stampede in Kolkata on Sunday, a day after postponing his planned Puja programmes following the tragedy.
At least 19 people were killed and 25 injured in the stampede at the north Kolkata pandal on Saturday evening, reportedly triggered by a sudden surge in the crowd amid rain.
Shah, who arrived in Kolkata on Saturday evening for a two-day visit to West Bengal, is likely to visit Kolkata Medical College and Hospital, where several injured people are undergoing treatment. Some of the injured have also been shifted to a private hospital on the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass. His revised itinerary has not yet been officially announced.
Following the incident, Shah expressed condolences to the families of those killed and said he had spoken to Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari about the tragedy. He said he would postpone his scheduled programmes and visit the injured in hospital.
“I pray to Maa Durga for the swift recovery of all the injured,” Shah said in a post on X.
Shah was originally scheduled to visit the Ramakrishna Mission headquarters at Belur Math, along with several community Durga Puja celebrations in Howrah and Kolkata. His itinerary also included a visit to the historic Sovabazar Rajbari Puja before his departure for Delhi.
Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said Shah had cancelled his Puja visits in the wake of the tragedy and would return to the national capital after meeting the injured.