Stampede at Karur Rally: FIR Points to Vijay’s Delay as Crowd Turns Unruly

FIR Filed Against Three TVK Leaders Excluding Actor Vijay After Karur Stampede

In a recent development, the FIR against key leaders of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) states that the delayed entry and prolonged stay of the actor inside the vehicle were a major cause of the stampede that killed at least 41 people. Actor-turned-politician Vijay remained inside his campaign vehicle for an extended period during his September 27 Karur rally, which led to restlessness among the crowd, as mentioned in the FIR.

FIR Explains How Karur Rally Turned Chaotic

According to the police, “Vijay remained inside his campaign vehicle at Velusamypuram, the venue where the stampede occurred, for an extended period, leading to overcrowding and restlessness among those gathered.”

“The situation went out of control as the crowd surged forward for a closer glimpse of Vijay,” the police told PTI, adding that the “narrow venue hardly afforded space for so many people”.

“Many in the crowd had climbed over steel sheds and trees to get a better view. When these collapsed, they fell on those below, resulting in the stampede, in which people died due to suffocation and crush injuries,” the FIR mentioned further.

Police said they “resorted to a lathi charge in a bid to restore order”, adding, “Many who fainted at the venue were rushed to the Karur government hospital”.

The FIR claimed “TVK workers broke police barriers - set up to control the crowd and prevent disasters such as the stampede - climbed on the tin roof of a shed, presumably to catch a glimpse of the actor.”

Unfortunately, the roof collapsed, killing and injuring TVK workers.

Earlier, videos shared by the TVK social media handles from that day showed massive crowds before the incident.

Charges on TVK Leaders for Karur Rally Stampede

TVK party's Karur North district secretary Mathiazhagan, state general secretary Bussy Anand, and deputy general secretary Nirmal Kumar are charged in the FIR. The police have not yet filed any case against Vijay.

“Charges against them include those under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 110 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 125 (endangering life of others), and 223 (disobedience to order), of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with section 3 of the Tamil Nadu Public Property (Preventing of Damage and Loss) Act 1992,” a police official told PTI.

What Police Revealed?

According to the cops, “Vijay was scheduled to speak at noon, but he turned up only at 7 pm - four hours after they were told he would reach - having delayed his arrival to build unnecessary expectations.”

“The bus carrying Vijay made multiple unscheduled stops, a de facto roadshow for which no permission was sought, and TVK leaders, including the actor and senior figure N 'Bussy' Anand, an ex-Puducherry MLA, ignored warnings about the lack of food, water, and facilities for the crowd,” the cops added.

“The campaign bus's frequent, and unplanned, stops also disrupted traffic,” the police said.

"The Karur event was categorised as high-risk. We deployed 500 personnel in the ratio of one cop for every 50 people, anticipating 25,000 people. Ultimately, nearly 27,000 people turned up," Davidson Devasirvatham, the Additional Director-General of Police (Law and Order), said.

Political Spat Over Stampede

The stampede has led to a political row between the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, which will make its electoral debut in the upcoming Assembly election.

The TVK leaders have blamed the stampede on a 'conspiracy' by the DMK. "There was a conspiracy, a criminal conspiracy in the incident at Karur..." the lawyer, Arivazhagan, declared, trashing the DMK's claim that the “TVK violated crowd safety guidelines.”

"We didn't violate conditions imposed by the police," he said, pointing to rallies at Madurai, Trichy, Ariyalur, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, and Namakkal that were held without chaos.

Dr Syed Hafeezullah, DMK’s spokesperson, said, "We don't want to politicise this. The law will take its course. Those who level such allegations should first introspect how their party leadership behaved."

Following the tragic incident, the actor was advised against his plan to visit the government hospital as his presence might cause crowding at the hospital premises. "Initially, he had planned to visit the injured and console them," a senior TVK leader said.

The families of the deceased will receive financial compensation of Rs 10 lakh from the state government and Rs 20 lakh from the TVK. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh per family from the Bharatiya Janata Party.