TVK chief and actor Vijay is set to appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) today in connection with the Karur stampede tragedy that claimed 41 lives in Tamil Nadu. The incident occurred on September 27 last year during a massive political rally addressed by Vijay, making it one of the deadliest crowd disasters in the state’s recent political history.
The investigation into the tragedy has gone through several legal twists. Initially, the Madras High Court had ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the incident. However, the Supreme Court later transferred the case to the CBI, stating that an independent and credible investigation was necessary. The apex court also quashed a one-member commission appointed by the Tamil Nadu government and directed that the CBI probe be monitored by a panel headed by a retired Supreme Court judge. Notably, Vijay’s party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), had itself demanded an independent inquiry.
At the time of the stampede, the Tamil Nadu Police blamed Vijay’s alleged delay in reaching the venue, claiming that the prolonged wait led to an uncontrollable surge of people. Police also pointed to inadequate arrangements such as lack of food, drinking water, and toilet facilities. Vijay rejected these allegations, calling them a conspiracy by the ruling DMK, and instead accused the police of poor crowd management and failure to clear bottlenecks on approach roads.
A TVK source said Vijay would fully cooperate with the investigation and expressed hope that the truth would emerge through the CBI probe.
Vijay’s CBI appearance comes amid another controversy involving the delay in certification of his film Jana Nayagan. Opposition parties, including the Congress, have alleged misuse of central agencies to exert political pressure on TVK ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections due in a few months. The BJP has denied these claims.
Vijay has positioned the upcoming elections as a direct contest between the DMK and TVK, describing the DMK as his political enemy and the BJP as his ideological opponent.
