The wife of the second person arrested in the Kolkata Durga Puja pandal stampede has alleged that her husband was explicitly instructed by senior officials of the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja committee to announce a false pandal collapse — a claim that, if verified, could significantly deepen criminal liability for the tragedy that killed 19 devotees on the night of 17 October 2026 in North Kolkata.

What the wife alleged

Koel Majumdar, wife of arrested accused Babu Majumdar (alias Kushal, alias Kalia), told reporters shortly after her husband's arrest on Friday morning that senior committee officials had both directed Babu to make the misleading announcement and subsequently advised him to disappear. 'At the time of the incident, he was instructed by senior officials of the organising committee to announce that the pandal had collapsed. He made the announcement believing that the danger could increase,' she alleged.

She further alleged that following the chaos, a section of the Puja organising committee advised Babu to go underground and 'remain underground till October 27.' According to Koel, her husband wanted to surrender to police on the night of the tragedy itself but was counselled against it. 'He had constantly been suffering from a feeling of remorse and repentance,' she added.

Who is Babu Majumdar

According to Koel, Babu is an app-cab driver by profession who had been associated with Chorbagan Sarbojanin for nearly 18 years. Significantly, she claimed he had never previously been assigned the task of making public announcements during Durga Puja 'because he was not particularly good at verbal communication' — raising questions about why he was chosen for that role on the night of the tragedy. Police sources confirmed that Babu had briefly returned home after the stampede but then departed, leaving his mobile phone behind.

How the stampede unfolded

The disaster occurred amid heavy rain on the night of 17 October. Chaos had already gripped the pandal as crowds waiting outside attempted to push in while those inside were reluctant to leave due to the weather. In that charged atmosphere, an announcement warning that the pandal had collapsed and urging immediate evacuation triggered mass panic. Devotees rushed toward exits simultaneously — some toward the entrance in an attempt to escape — resulting in the deadly crush that claimed 19 lives and left several others injured.

Arrests so far

Babu Majumdar is the second person arrested in the case. On Thursday, Kolkata Police detained Sanjib Raha (alias Sentu), the treasurer of the Chorbagan Sarbojanin Durga Puja organising committee, who is the prime accused. In total, nine people have been arrested so far. Investigators are examining the sequence of events, the chain of command within the organising committee, and the alleged roles of Puja officials in triggering the crowd surge.

What comes next

Koel Majumdar's allegations, if corroborated, could shift the focus of the investigation from individual negligence to a coordinated attempt to cover up the circumstances of the stampede. Police are now probing whether the instruction to make the false announcement was a deliberate decision and whether the subsequent advice to go underground constitutes obstruction of justice. With nine arrests made and the investigation ongoing, further developments in the case are expected in the coming days.