Stalin said that, compared to the usual security arrangements provided for political campaign meetings, additional security personnel had been deployed during the Karur rally.
Published Oct 15, 2025 | 12:02 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 15, 2025 | 1:18 PM
Chief Minister MK Stalin speaking at the state Assembly.
Synopsis: Almost three weeks after the stampede in Karur, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin addressed the state Assembly regarding the tragedy. Stalin, in his address, said that TVK did not make any basic arrangements required for the gathering.
Almost three weeks after the stampede in Karur that killed 41 people and injured several others, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on Wednesday, 15 October, addressed the state Assembly regarding the tragedy.
“The Karur tragedy has deeply shaken the hearts of people across Tamil Nadu. I offer my heartfelt condolences to the bereaved families and pay my deepest respects to those who lost their lives,” Stalin said in the Assembly.
The stampede occurred on 27 September during a rally organised by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) and a public meeting of party chief and actor-turned-politician Vijay. The lack of proper arrangements from the organisers, including basic amenities, proved costly.
Stalin, in his address, said that TVK did not make any basic arrangements required for the gathering.
“Before the crowd crush in Karur, no ambulance was there. Only after the crowd surge occurred and people needed help were ambulances called in — they came to save lives. No fake ambulances were brought in,” he said.
Noting the late arrival of Vijay, Stalin added, “The leader of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam arrived seven hours late. Due to the crowd congestion, the police had instructed that the speech be delivered a few metres ahead of the designated place, but that instruction was not followed”
The event was scheduled to have been held at 12 noon, and a later announcement was made that the actor-turned-politician would arrive at 12.45 pm. However, Vijay arrived only around 7 pm.
Speaking about the claim that the power supply was cut off, Stalin said that due to the crowd surge, people had entered the area where the generator was placed, and to prevent them from getting electrocuted, the generator operator himself turned off the power supply.
Stalin said that, compared to the usual security arrangements provided for political campaign meetings, additional security personnel had been deployed during the Karur rally.
“The AIADMK had held a meeting at the same venue in Karur just two days earlier, where the crowd had gathered and dispersed in an orderly manner. In stark contrast, what happened during the TVK meeting was completely different,” he added.
He alleged that while the rescue operations were in full swing, members of the TVK attacked the ambulances.
Noting that the state government handled the incident appropriately in accordance with the law, he said, “Guidelines for political parties’ public meetings are being prepared. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered that this case be handed over to the CBI. Abiding by the interim order of the Supreme Court, the case has been handed over to the CBI. The Tamil Nadu government will act in accordance with the final verdict.”
“For the Karur event, security arrangements were made by the Tamil Nadu Police under the supervision of the Karur District Superintendent of Police. A total of 606 personnel were deployed for security duty, including three Additional Superintendents of Police, Deputy Superintendents, Inspectors, Sub-Inspectors, and Armed Reserve police personnel,” he added.
Stalin reiterated that the number of police personnel deployed was higher than what is usually assigned for political campaign meetings.
He further said that the first post-mortem examination started at 1.45 am on 28 September, and the 39th was completed by around 1.10 pm the same day.
After the chief minister’s speech, Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly Edappadi K
Palaniswami stated that the government was responsible for the tragedy and pointed out several doubts surrounding the issue, leading to a noisy exchange in the House.
In response, DMK ministers began referring to the 2018 Thoothukudi police firing incident. Following this, Edappadi Palaniswami and AIADMK members staged a walkout from the Assembly.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil with inputs from Subash Chandra Bose.)
