The stampede, the latest in a string of similar incidents across the country this year, has left the nation shaken. It has left Karur and neighbouring districts gripped by anger and a sense of helplessness.
Published Sep 29, 2025 | 9:00 AM ⚊ Updated Sep 29, 2025 | 9:00 AM
The site of the tragedy resembled a battlefield rather than the venue of a political rally.
Synopsis: For nearly half a kilometre along Veluchamipuram Road, thousands of abandoned shoes and torn TVK paraphernalia lay scattered. The site of the tragedy resembled a battlefield rather than the venue of a political rally. The stampede, the latest in a string of similar incidents across the country this year, has left the nation shaken and Karur, along with neighbouring districts, gripped by anger and helplessness. As a one-member commission, headed by retired judge Aruna Jegadeesan, begins its investigation, South First was on the ground to understand what really happened.
“Is Vijay someone who descended from the skies? He too has just two hands and two legs like us. Why should people die just to see him? That venue wasn’t equipped for such a huge crowd. Why did they do this?” a 40-year-old woman wondered aloud.
She was among many on a bus from Tamil Nadu’s Trichy on its way to Karur on Sunday, 28 September, trying to make sense of the seemingly senseless tragedy of the previous day.
Forty lives, including those of children and women, were lost in a campaign rally at Veluchamipuram in Karur. More than 60 others are still undergoing treatment in hospitals.
The stampede, the latest in a string of similar incidents across the country this year, has left the nation shaken. It has left Karur and neighbouring districts gripped by anger and a sense of helplessness.
At the same time, the party at the centre of it all, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), has blamed the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led state government for the tragedy, while the latter has focused on providing immediate aid to those affected.
Even as a one-member commission, led by retired judge Aruna Jegadeesan, begins its investigation into the tragedy, South First was on the ground to understand what really happened.
For nearly half a kilometre from the Veluchamipuram bypass on Veluchamipuram Road, thousands of abandoned footwear and torn TVK paraphernalia, such as flags and banners, lay strewn. It was the site of the tragedy and resembled a battlefield rather than the venue of a political rally.
“If Vijay had arrived on time, this incident would not have happened,” Vetrivel, a local resident at Veluchamipuram, told South First. “It was announced that Vijay would arrive at noon. From morning itself, crowds started swelling. Many people climbed trees and high places to get a view.”
Police, fire service personnel, and TVK organisers kept asking people to get down, but to little avail. “The crowd kept growing as Vijay did not arrive on time. The heat was unbearable, and people could hardly breathe,” Vetrivel added.
The anticipation reached a fever pitch as Vijay, who was supposed to arrive by 3 pm, did not turn up until 7 pm – almost five hours late.
“When Vijay finally arrived, the accompanying crowd also merged with the waiting public, causing the stampede. Some of his supporters climbed onto nearby tin sheds to get a better view, but the sheds collapsed,” Vetrivel recounted.
“People fell onto the generator wires connected to the microphones and lights, causing a power cut and plunging the area into darkness. This triggered chaos, with people falling on each other. If Vijay had come on time, during daylight, the tragedy could have been avoided.”
Another local resident, Raja, said the area was simply not suitable to accommodate such a large crowd.
“These kinds of rallies should be held only on the Karur outer roads. Security was also lacking. If police had been deployed inside the gathering to prevent people from climbing onto dangerous spots, this wouldn’t have happened,” he told South First.
“Until 4 pm, the crowd wasn’t that big. But once people heard that he had left the neighbouring district, the crowd swelled. From a nearby Muneeswaran temple, just 500 meters away, it took Vijay’s convoy almost two hours to reach the main venue. If at least he had addressed supporters along the way, the rush could have been avoided. Instead, the crowd surged toward the central ground, causing the fatal crush,” Raja said.
Another resident noted that Veluchamipuram Road is just a narrow 60-by-40-foot stretch, and Karur has no larger central roads. “For such large gatherings, only outer areas should be permitted. Allowing this here itself was a mistake,” he added.
Others told South First that when the incident occurred, no police personnel were present near the central spot, having been stationed 500 metres away, while only about 20 officers were near Vijay’s convoy.
Some also claimed that when Vijay was speaking, the power went out, and because the audience could not hear him, they surged forward to listen better, sparking the disaster.
Even so, TVK members have accused the government on social media of deliberately failing to provide adequate security. They allege that instead of giving them the requested larger grounds, authorities forced them into a cramped location, causing the tragedy.
The claim found support with the mother of one of the victims, 13-year-old Sanuj. “The police failed to give proper protection. We will not blame Vijay sir, but the police and the government are fully responsible for this,” she told reporters.
On Sunday, the party filed a petition in the Madras High Court alleging that this was a planned conspiracy and demanded a CBI inquiry, submitting evidence in support. The case is scheduled for Monday.
TVK had obtained permission to hold the rally at Veluchamipuram from 3 pm to 10 pm, but locals recounted that Vijay arrived only at 7 pm, having come from the neighbouring Namakkal district, where he had reached at 3 pm.
When he arrived at the venue, the crowd accompanying his convoy reportedly clashed with the waiting audience, causing people to fall on one another. Some standing on rooftops and elevated spots also reportedly fell. These claims could not be independently verified.
Meanwhile, seemingly unaware of the unfolding tragedy below, Vijay continued to address the gathering from atop his vehicle. Videos of the incident soon went viral on social media.
Notably, when ambulances tried to enter the crowd to rescue the unconscious, TVK cadres allegedly assumed they were sent to disperse the rally. They reportedly attacked the drivers, smashed ambulance windows, and created further chaos.
Even as the tragedy unfolded, some prominent TVK supporters mocked it online, sarcastically posting: “How many ambulances…”
Vijay himself, at one point, reportedly mocked an ambulance that came into the crowd, saying, “Ennapa, there’s our party flag on the ambulance,” without realising the critical situation around him. This reportedly provoked his cadres, who can be seen shouting loudly in videos.
It has since become evident that neither Vijay nor his cadres grasped the gravity of the situation. As cadres climbed onto rooftops dangerously and attacked ambulances, police intervened with lathicharge to disperse them, which only worsened the panic.
At a nearby generator site, people scrambling from the chaos fell on the wires, triggering a temporary blackout that further intensified the stampede. By the time around 75 percent of the crowd had dispersed, the number of casualties remained unknown, as those who had fainted from exhaustion and the crush continued to grow.
According to government sources, all victims brought to hospitals were already dead on arrival.
Speaking to reporters after visiting Karur Government General Hospital, Tamil Nadu Director of Medical Education Rajakumari said all 40 people who died in the Karur crowd crush lost their lives due to suffocation, confirmed by post-mortem examinations.
She added that 52 people are currently being treated at the government hospital, with two in critical condition, while others are stable. Around 60 to 70 doctors, assisted by specialists from Salem, Erode and Madurai, are engaged in treatment.
Sixteen doctors have been deployed for autopsies. In addition, 31 people are receiving treatment in private hospitals in Karur.
Tamil Nadu DGP Venkataraman, soon after the tragedy unfolded on Saturday evening, asserted that the TVK had been provided all facilities by the police, including the site they requested, and promised an investigation to determine accountability.
“There were no lapses in security. Without cooperation from the organising party, we cannot execute our duties effectively,” ADGP (Law & Order) Davidson Devasirvadam told the media in Karur on Sunday.
He responded point by point to allegations from TVK and opposition parties.
“On September 23, TVK sought permission to hold the meeting at Lighthouse Roundtana. But that was deemed a high-risk zone – with a petrol bunk on one side and a bridge over the Amaravathi River on the other. Similarly, the Uzhavar Sandhai area is too narrow,” he said.
“So, permission was granted on September 26 for Veluchamipuram ground, which TVK themselves requested. This was an approved venue where 12,000 people had previously gathered.”
Locals also acknowledged that Karur lacks space for such massive gatherings, which is why large events like the DMK’s recent Mupperum Vizha were held on the outskirts. South First visited the Roundtana and Uzhavar Sandhai areas, which indeed turned out to be narrow and unsuitable for a large political rally.
TVK has maintained that the blackout during Vijay’s speech caused the stampede. But Karur TNEB Chief Engineer Rajalakshmi told reporters: “That is completely false. There was no power cut during his speech.”
She clarified that the blackout was caused by TVK supporters falling onto the generator wires powering the microphones and lights. Electricity had been briefly turned off earlier in the day as a precaution when people climbed onto rooftops and trees, but it was restored before Vijay’s arrival.
Responding to TVK’s allegations of insufficient security, ADGP Davidson provided figures.
“Normally, we classify venues as low, medium, or high-risk and deploy accordingly. For this rally, we deployed 3 ADSPs, 4 DSPs, 7 Inspectors, 58 Sub-Inspectors – totaling around 500 personnel,” he added.
For comparison, he said that at the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam rally attended by opposition leader Edappadi Palaniswami two days earlier in the same district, only 137 police personnel were deployed, and no issues arose.
Davidson also alleged that despite advising Vijay’s team to stop at the outer road, they insisted on proceeding to the central stage, worsening the crush.
“When Vijay’s convoy neared Veluchamipuram, the DSP briefed him. Just 50 meters before the stage, organisers were told the crowd was overflowing and unsafe. Yet, they pressed ahead. Having waited since noon without food or rest, people surged dangerously,” the ADGP said.
He confirmed that police deployment was based on TVK’s estimate of 10,000 attendees, with 1 officer for every 20 people. Meanwhile, the number of people gathered was approximately 27,000, according to police.
As for TVK’s claim of stone-pelting, Davidson dismissed it as baseless. Locals interviewed by South First also said no such incident occurred.
Following the tragic stampede, Karur police have booked TVK district secretary Mathiazhagan, along with TVK leaders Bussy Anand and CT Nirmal Kumar, under the following provisions:
So far, 40 people have been officially confirmed dead, and more than 60 remain in hospital.
Chief Minister MK Stalin rushed to Karur at midnight on September 27, met bereaved families, and announced ex-gratia compensation: ₹10 lakh for the deceased and ₹1 lakh for the injured.
Vijay faced criticism for leaving Karur immediately after the tragedy and posting only a single tweet expressing sorrow. Later, on Sunday morning, he announced ₹20 lakh for each of the deceased and ₹2 lakh for the injured from his side.
Congress president Selvaperunthagai, who met victims directly, announced that the Tamil Nadu Congress would provide ₹1 crore in total compensation.
From the Union government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced ₹2 lakh for the deceased and ₹50,000 for the injured from the PM’s Relief Fund.
Other leaders, including MPs Kanimozhi, Thirumavalavan, Jothimani, Pattali Makkal Katchi leader Anbumani, and Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam leader Premalatha Vijayakanth, also visited the affected areas on Sunday.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
