Police on Friday arrested five persons for their alleged involvement in the stampede at a religious event in Asansol in Paschim Bardhaman district, in which three persons were killed, a senior officer said.

Asansol city police conducted raids since Thursday night and arrested five persons from different locations for their alleged involvement in the mishap which took place on Wednesday evening, he said.

"We have arrested five persons from different locations in Asansol in the stampede incident. We are trying to find out whether this stampede was a planned one or there were lapses on part of the organisers of the religious programme. Raids are on," the officer said.

Sources in the police said the five arrested are close aides of local BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari.

Three persons were killed and five others seriously injured on Wednesday in a stampede at a blanket distribution programme at Asansol in West Bengal’s Paschim Bardhaman district.

The stampede occurred when people rushed towards the dais in an attempt to get blankets after the Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP left the venue.

Two women and a girl died in the stampede.

The stampede happened after Adhikari left the venue. He alleged that the police posting was taken off the place, soon after he left the venue and following there was this stampede.

The mishap soon snowballed into a controversy with both BJP and Trinamul Congress blaming each other for it.

The police claimed that no permission was given for the blanket distribution programme. The police have constituted a team to probe into the mishap.

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