The plea argues that the state police should not investigate the case and that it must be handed over to the CBI.
Published Sep 29, 2025 | 3:26 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 29, 2025 | 3:26 PM
Madras High Court. (Wikimedia Commons)
Synopsis: Speaking to reporters, a lawyer representing TVK said the petition mentions that around 40 people lost their lives at party leader Vijay’s Karur rally due to police lapses and confusion caused by certain senior DMK district secretaries and officials.
In connection with the Karur incident, which claimed 41 lives, the actor turned politician Vijay’s party TVK lawyers’ wing has filed a petition in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court seeking a CBI probe.
They also requested that the court direct authorities to preserve CCTV footage and other documents from the site of the tragedy.
Speaking to reporters, a lawyer representing TVK said the petition mentions that around 40 people lost their lives at party leader Vijay’s Karur rally due to police lapses and confusion caused by certain senior DMK district secretaries and officials.
The plea argues that the state police should not investigate the case and that it must be handed over to the CBI.
The petition further alleges power cuts, unnecessary lathi charges, and even claims that some DMK members had posted on Facebook beforehand suggesting such incidents could occur.
It also questions how 39 autopsies were conducted in a single night, pointing out that normally post-mortems are not carried out between sunset and sunrise. The plea raises doubts on how so many doctors were brought in overnight and whether all of them were qualified to conduct autopsies.
Since the court has not yet issued any orders regarding the petition’s hearing, TVK members said they are discussing their next course of action.
So far, 41 people have lost their lives in the stampede on 27 September — 14 men, 18 women, four boys and five girls. Among the deceased, 34 are from the Karur district, two each from the Erode, Tiruppur, and Dindigul districts, and one from the Salem district.
Following the tragic stampede, Tamil Nadu Director General of Police (in-charge) G Venkataraman told the media that a large crowd, inadequate facilities and congestion caused the tragedy.
The TVK headquarters had informed the district police that it was expecting only around 10,000 people to attend the meeting. The party also assured in writing that it would make the necessary arrangements and sought the police permission to hold the meeting.
(Edited by Sumavarsha, with inputs from Subash Chandra Bose)
