17 dead, 25 hurt in stampede at Durga Puja gathering in Kolkata

At least 17 people were killed and two dozen more injured on Saturday in eastern India after a stampede that was likely caused by sudden rainfall during a Hindu religious gathering, officials said. West Bengal’s Chief Minister Suvendhu Adhikari told reporters the fatalities included a seven-year-old girl, adding that 25 others were injured outside a pavilion “in a stampede” at the Hindu festival of Durga Puja in the city of Kolkata. “Six bodies have so far been identified,” Adhikari said. A senior police official at the scene told AFP an announcement caused “commotion” after it started…