TVK Vijay Rally Stampede Highlights: Inquiry panel begins probe; CM Stalin says action based on report

The crowd at Vijay’s event in Karur on Saturday night was less a political assembly and more a sea of fans desperate to see their superstar from close quarters so they could have a glimpse, a selfie, a story to tell. In that frenzy, when some supporters who had climbed atop a tree branch fell on the people behind Vijay’s campaign van, panic rippled outward and turned a rally into a catastrophe.

The disaster has highlighted the combustible mix of Tamil Nadu’s enduring movie fandom and its politics, where actors often blur the line between celebrity and power. Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), the new political vehicle of actor Vijay, is still in its infancy. Its rallies, however, have already acquired the aura of blockbuster releases: unpredictable, emotional, and often unmanageable.

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Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin said the Commission led by retired judge Aruna Jagadeesan would arrive in Karur later in the day to probe the stampede incident.

He said Chief Minister M K Stalin would take appropriate action based on the report submitted by the panel.

Udhayanidhi was accompanied by Cabinet colleagues, including Health Minister Ma Subramanian.

"The Commission will speak to the affected individuals and submit its report. Based on its recommendations, the Chief Minister will take suitable action," Udhayanidhi told reporters.

The death toll rose to 40 after a man succumbed to injuries at the government hospital, a health official said.

Police registered a criminal case against leaders of Tamil actor Vijay's political party after a stampede at his rally killed 39 people, a senior police official said.

Tamil Nadu police filed the case "against TVK party senior leaders Bussy Anand, Nirmal Kumar and V P Mathiyalagan, and the investigation is under way," senior police official V. Selvaraj told Reuters.

"TVK originally sought permission for a gathering of 10,000 people, but the actual crowd was more than double," he said.

What should have been a triumphant campaign stop for superstar-turned-politician Vijay in this historical town in western Tamil Nadu ended in chaos after a cascade of mistakes: his van window kept shut, hundreds of fans chasing his convoy from the nearby city of Namakkal, wrong announcements from his organisers, and a tree branch collapsing on a restless crowd. Within 10 minutes, panic turned into a stampede.

Now, with the toll at 39, the town in mourning, and an inquiry ordered, the big question is what will happen to Vijay, who left for Chennai after the tragedy.

Find out.

Senior AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami alleged that the previous AIADMK government under him took sufficient precaution when political meetings were held but now the police were not giving total protection. They followed two different yardsticks, providing enhanced security for DMK. The police should remain neutral, he added.

"No where the police have been involved in efforts to defuse the stampede and in providing security. This government is partial," the former Chief Minister alleged.

Vijay's remark at the rally as to why the ambulances were carrying his party's flags raised doubts, he said.

Palaniswami declined to accept the police version of the incident that the gathering exceeded the anticipated numbers and hence became unmanageable to control, and shot back "does not the police know how many attended the earlier four meetings of Vijay and did not the TVK party inform them of the numbers? Should not the police take appropriate precautionary measures?"

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said that the stampede at TVK's political rally in Karur showed evidence of security lapse on the part of the police and administration.

Such a "shocking tragedy" which claimed 39 innocent lives besides hospitalising 51 people could have been averted had the police and state government taken sufficient precautionary measures, he said.

"There is evidence of a security lapse at Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam meeting, based on media reports. There was confusion and stampede due to power disruption. TVK should have taken precautionary measures focussing on safety and security of its party workers as it had held four meetings so far," Palaniswami told reporters.

The police should have reviewed and strengthened the security arrangements based on the crowd that attended the TVK meetings in the past and depending on the prevailing situation at Karur meeting. Even the government and TVK leadership should have bestowed thought on the security arrangements, he said.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy condoled the deaths of the stampede victims.

The CM expressed grief over the tragedy and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured.

“Deeply saddened by the tragic loss of lives in the stampede at Karur. My heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and prayers for the injured,” said Naidu in a post on X late on Saturday.

Reddy expressed anguish over the incident, calling it an "extremely painful" tragedy for families who lost their loved ones.

“My heartfelt prayers are with the bereaved families who are passing through unimaginable grief. I stand with them in this dark hour,” said Reddy in a YSRCP press release issued late on Saturday.

The bodies of 38 people who died due to stampede at the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam's rally on September 27, have been identified and currently efforts were on to hand over their mortal remains to their relatives, Dindigul district collector S Saravanan has said on Sunday.

The identify of a woman was yet to be established, he said.

"Currently, work to identify this woman was on and once it's done, we would follow the due procedure of conducting a post-mortem and hand over the body to her relatives,” he said.

Of the deceased, 14 have been handed over to their relatives so far, Saravanan told reporters here.

Director of Medical Education, Dr Suganthi Rajakumari, said the condition of two people who were admitted continued to remain in critical and efforts were on to revive them.

To a question, she told reporters here that all government facilities had adequate supplies of oxygen and medicines and that the patients were being provided the best treatment.

“Totally, we received 39 bodies at the GH and post-mortem was performed on 31 persons. Two persons are in a critical condition,” Rajakumari said.

Vijay was accorded welcome at one point and a big crowd followed him and he was ushered in safely to the venue by the police. "He also lauded the police...the crowd kept swelling," Tamil Nadu DGP G Venkataraman said.

While the organisers put the expected number at 10,000, about 27,000 people turned up to have a glimpse of the actor, Venkataraman said.

He indicated police protection was given anticipating about 20,000.

Asked if there were "only 500" police personnel on bandobast duty, he said the meeting venue was a public road and more police cover would have meant people would not have sufficient space.

Two days ago, the meeting of a "big party" was held here, he said in an apparent reference to the AIADMK.

Asked if there was any "security lapse" that led to the tragic incident, he pointed out that the government has announced a Commission of Inquiry to probe the cause.

The organisers were clearly told about crowd and related issues and the police is only "extra help," and there cannot be added police presence anticipating such a surge in crowd.

Presently ADGP (Law and Order), Davidson Airvatham, 3 Inspector General of Police, 2 DIGs, 10 SPs and 2000 police personnel have left for Karur, he said.

Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay posted on X," My heart is shattered; I am writhing in unbearable, indescribable pain and sorrow that words cannot express. I extend my deepest condolences and sympathies to the families of my dear brothers and sisters who lost their lives in Karur. I pray for the swift recovery of those receiving treatment in the hospital."