In Karur, Tamil Nadu, actor Vijay’s party Tamizhaga Vaatri Vaatri Kazhagam (TVK) is facing allegations of security lapse after the death of 40 people in a stampede and injuries about 100, but the state police rejected the allegations and claimed that sufficient number of soldiers were deployed to control the mob. Police say that the situation deteriorated due to more crowds than the estimate in the event.
Deployment of 500 soldiers, wrong guess of crowd
ADGP (Law and Order) Davidson Devasiravatham said that the Karur program was placed in the high risk category. That is why 500 policemen were deployed. He said, “The organizers had taken permission of 12,000 people, but we arranged with an estimate of 25,000 people, but about 27,000 people reached here.”
The police officer said that adequate force was also imposed in the previous meetings of Vijay. 650 policemen were deployed in Trichy, 287 in Ariyalur, 480 in Perambalur, 410 in Nagapattinam, 413 in Thiruwarur and 279 in Namakkal. At the same time, only 137 policemen were deployed during the rally of AIADMK chief Edappadi Palaniswami in Karur as the crowd was disciplined there.
It was difficult to remove the injured
Devasiravatham admitted that the situation had become very chaotic during Vijay’s rally. He said, ‘We could not get the injured people out of the crowd. Even Vijay had become difficult to remove safe.
The ADGP responded to the doubt about Palaniswami’s ambulance and said that TVK had arranged two ambulances as per the conditions. After the accident, the police alerted the local police station and about 10 ambulances from private hospitals were sent on the spot.
How did the uproar start?
According to the official, Vijay’s Namakkal program was to be held at 12 noon, but it started four hours late. Vijay reached Karur at 6 pm and boarded his promotional vehicle. During this time, people kept walking behind the vehicle to see them. The organizers turned down the advice of the police that Vijay stopped 50 meters before and gave a speech. The crowd could not see them for about 10 minutes, causing restlessness and suddenly a stampede occurred.
Police said that many supporters were present at the site from 11 am. His discomfort had increased due to waiting for hours without eating food and water. The official said that the situation worsened due to an incident on the side of the crowd, which is being investigated.
Controversy over power cuts
TVK alleged the power failure, but the Tamil Nadu Electricity Department rejected it. The department said that electricity supply was not interrupted in Karur. In fact, TVK had installed its generator and focus lights, which were impressed amidst increasing crowds.
Accusation of police and TVK
While the police say that the party did not follow the fixed conditions, TVK alleged that the police failed to get traffic control and the crowd out safely. TVK described it as the real reason for the stampede and announced to demand an independent inquiry in the Madras High Court. The party has accused the ruling DMK of ‘conspiracy’, which the DMK has strictly rejected.
High court canceled immediate hearing
On Sunday (September 28, 2025), the Madras High Court canceled the immediate hearing on the Karur stampede case. Justice N. Senthilkumar’s holiday bench had decided to hear the petition at 4:30 pm. But after examining the documents, the court found that it is not a new petition but an implied petition filed in the already pending case. After this, the court canceled the immediate hearing.