Suvendu Adhikari addressed a Kolkata gathering on religious freedoms and the Chorbagan tragedy. His government plans an impartial inquiry and stronger crowd management for upcoming festivals.Image used for representational purposes onlyKolkata,Oct 26, 2026 23:34 ISTWest Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday accused the previous Trinamool Congress government of restricting religious celebrations in parts of the state, alleging that its “attitude of surrender” had curtailed religious freedoms, news agency Press Trust of India reported.Addressing a Bijaya Sammilani gathering in Kolkata, Adhikari said restrictions previously imposed on idol immersion processions and the use of loudspeakers in several areas were not enforced during this year’s Durga Puja.He cited Falakata in Alipurduar, Farakka in Murshidabad, Garden Reach in Kolkata, Khagrabani in Contai in Purba Medinipur, and Canning, Shirakol and Bhangar in South 24 Parganas as places where such restrictions had allegedly been imposed earlier.“Religion belongs to each individual, but festivals are for everyone.
The responsibility to protect one’s religion rests with the individual. This is the new West Bengal, the West Bengal of change,” he said.
Adhikari said nearly 66,000 Durga Pujas were held across the state and the festival passed off peacefully, barring the Chorbagan tragedy. Nineteen people were killed in a stampede at the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal.Describing the incident as deeply painful, he said the loss of lives was more important than the government’s response. “What the government has done or intends to do is not the main issue.
An extremely tragic and painful incident has taken place,” he said. According to PTI, Adhikari said his government would neither dismiss the incident as a minor one nor attribute it to a conspiracy.
Referring to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s Vijayadashami address, he said the tragedy should not be downplayed and acknowledged that human error was involved.“This is the new West Bengal. The government will not shield anyone responsible,” Adhikari said.He said the puja had been organised with government approval and a committee involving a retired judge had been tasked with conducting an inquiry after consultation with the Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court.
The findings and recommendations of the impartial investigation would be made public and circulated among puja committees in the form of a booklet to help prevent similar incidents.The chief minister also defended the decision to move 25 injured people from government hospitals to private healthcare facilities, saying their treatment had been given priority over institutional considerations.“There has been no failure here. We did not keep patients in government hospitals out of ego or pride.
The priority was to ensure that they received treatment and could return home,” he said.Tributes were paid to those who died, while financial assistance was handed over to the families of the injured at the programme.Adhikari said special preparatory meetings would begin after government offices reopen on October 28 to review security and crowd-management arrangements for Kali Puja, Diwali, Chhath Puja and Jagaddhatri Puja.He urged puja committees and the administration to remain vigilant, particularly at crowded venues and Chhath ghats, saying lessons from past incidents would help them prepare for the remaining festivals.Adhikari said preliminary preparations had also begun for the Gangasagar Mela, which the government planned to organise according to international standards. Recalling the 2017 incident in which 17 pilgrims died after a jetty collapsed, he said the administration would focus on preventing a recurrence.The chief minister said the government would act on the findings of the Chorbagan inquiry while strengthening security and crowd-management arrangements for upcoming festivals and the Gangasagar Mela.- Ends