Police on Thursday questioned officials of the event management company that had been hired for the soiree at Nazrul Mancha where singer Krishnakumar Kunnath, popular by his stage name KK, had performed hours before he died of a cardiac arrest on Tuesday.
Officers of the New Market police station said though they had not received any complaint from KK’s family, they were recording statements of all people involved in the show and officials of the hotel where the singer had put up.
However, the police have yet to call students of Sir Gurudas Mahavidyalaya and Trinamul’s students’ wing leaders who had organised the programme and distributed passes way beyond the hall’s capacity.
“There is no formal complaint, but there are allegations that more people were allowed in than what the auditorium can seat. Also, the majority of the auditorium’s gates were allegedly kept open. We are trying to find out whether there was any negligence at any level that could have impacted the singer,” said a senior police officer.
Sources in the police said the officials of the event management company have shared documents related to their contract with the college.
One official purportedly told the cops that their “scope of work was limited to handling the artiste”.
One investigator said they would verify the claims with the organisers.
An official working for the company told The Telegraph: “We have nothing to hide. The contract is in black and white.”
Allegations have surfaced that the organisers from the college had allowed people three times the capacity of the auditorium.
Pankaj Ghosh, unit president of Trinamul Chhatra Parishad at Sir Gurudas Mahavidyalaya, said on Thursday that around 3,500 passes were printed. Nazrul Mancha’s maximum capacity is 2,482.
“It is normal to print a few extra passes as not all who collect passes turn up,” he said.
The police said that it was entirely the responsibility of the organisers to ensure that the number of passes distributed did not exceed the capacity of the hall.
A senior officer said the organisers from the college, too, would be questioned in connection with the case.
Officers at Lalbazar formally said on Thursday that the autopsy on KK revealed “a fatty layer around the heart”.
A senior officer said: “The heart had turned white, the valves were stiff when the heart was opened. Doctors have said this develops over a period of time.”
The police said they had found that the singer was in the habit of taking antacid medicines and around 10 different types of medicines, some of which were related to stomach and liver, were found in his room.
“According to the statement of the manager, KK had told him on the morning of May 31 (Tuesday) that he was low on energy that day,” the officer said.
The officer said the post-mortem report and viscera reports would be sent for histopathological tests.
