Kolkata Police has drastically escalated its probe into the devastating tragedy that unfolded at the iconic Chorbagan Sarbojonin Durga Puja pandal in North Kolkata. On the solemn evening of Saptami, a massive stampede broke out inside the tightly packed pandal, claiming the lives of 19 helpless devotees. In a blink of an eye, the festive euphoria turned into deep gloom and shock. To uncover the exact triggers behind this disaster, the homicide and investigation wing of Lalbazar has summoned the principal pandal artisan and sculptor, Sushanta Shivani Paul, directing him to appear at the police headquarters by this Wednesday.

Simultaneously, senior investigators have compiled a comprehensive roster of all police personnel who were stationed at the primary entry and exit gates of the pandal on the fateful night of Saptami. According to sources at Lalbazar, the officers on duty will undergo rigorous phased questioning over the coming days. The primary focus of the interrogations is to assess whether the crowd management strategies implemented that night were adequate and whether any grave professional negligence or chaos contributed to the bottleneck inside the venue.

A senior Kolkata Police official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, stated that recording the official statement of the pandal decorator is indispensable for the ongoing investigation. Hence, the decision was taken to interrogate him regarding the structural layout. However, repeated attempts to establish contact with artist Sushanta Shivani Paul for his comments remained unsuccessful.

According to police sources, investigators have prepared a battery of sharp queries for the artisan. The probe will examine whether the physical structure strictly adhered to the original architectural blueprint submitted prior to the festival, or if any unapproved structural modifications were forced upon the artist by external influences during the construction phase.

Meanwhile, forensic experts who inspected the site have submitted a startling preliminary report. The report highlights that while 134 tons of air-conditioning capacity was installed inside the enclosed structure, it was dangerously inadequate given the vast volume of visitors crammed into the space. The investigation team is currently evaluating two primary scenarios—whether the calamity was triggered purely by heavy rainfall and uncontrolled crowd pressure, or if poor ventilation and structural design defects caused severe suffocation, culminating in the fatal stampede.