West Bengal Police STF arrested a man from Cooch Behar for spreading fake casualty figures regarding the Chorbagan puja stampede.
The accused allegedly shared misleading social media claims inflating the actual death toll and circulating unverified old videos.
Authorities acted swiftly to curb panic and prevent potential disruptions to public law and order.
The STF of West Bengal Police arrested a man from Cooch Behar district for allegedly spreading misinformation on social media about the toll in the Chorbagan Durga Puja stampede three days ago, a senior officer said on Tuesday.
Nineteen people were killed and 25 injured in a stampede at the Durga Puja pandal in north Kolkata on Saturday evening.
"We have arrested a person for spreading misinformation about the toll in the Chorbagan pandal mishap. He was picked up from his residence on Monday. We will not tolerate any attempt that could disrupt law and order in the state," the officer told PTI.
The arrested person, Ainul Haque, is a permanent resident of Cooch Behar, he said.
"We are concerned over the circulation of false information on social media. Some people claimed that 60 people had died in the incident," the officer said.
