Vijay calls Karur stampede victims for meeting at Mahabalipuram resort – but the plan isn’t sitting right with everyone

According to one of the senior TVK functionaries, 20 families have expressed consent to attend. “The remaining 21 are reluctant,” he said, “including some who questioned the logic of asking them to meet the superstar in Chennai instead of him visiting them at their homes.”

One family, the leader said, “questioned why the superstar is calling them to Chennai on Monday when there is a cyclone alert issued on Friday morning itself.”

The criticism adds a fresh layer of discomfort to a tragedy that has already shadowed Vijay’s fledgling political career. The September 27 rally in Karur was meant to be a show of strength for his newly launched TVK but ended in chaos when a crowd surge killed 41 people – including at least 10 children and several women.

Since that day, Vijay has maintained a low public profile. Party activities were suspended indefinitely. The Mahabalipuram meeting, according to insiders, is intended as a step toward closure – for both the families and for the party’s stalled political momentum.

Of the 41 families affected, 39 have already been paid Rs 20 lakh each as compensation from TVK funds. “The remaining two payments are delayed due to technical reasons related to recipients’ bank accounts,” the TVK leader said. Vijay, he added, “hopes that his party local leaders will eventually convince all 41 families to attend the meeting in Chennai on Monday.”

While the party has presented the event as a personal outreach by Vijay, several within TVK privately concede that the optics of calling the grieving families to his turf – a resort on the coast rather than their homes in Karur – may not sit well with the public. “It could have been handled more sensitively,” said a senior TVK leader, who is part of the arrangements for the Monday meeting.

The party had earlier cited “logistical and security concerns” as reasons for holding the event away from Karur. On October 8, TVK had sought permission from the Tamil Nadu Director General of Police (DGP) for Vijay, who has Y-category security cover, to visit Karur in the second week of October. The DGP’s office reportedly advised the party to coordinate with the local Superintendent of Police.