The death toll climbed to 41 on Monday after a 60-year-old woman succumbed to her injuries at the hospital. Police had advised Vijay not to visit the government hospital to meet the victims due to the sensitive law-and-order situation, a TVK source said
Police personnel at the government hospital in Karur, Tamil Nadu, where the injured are undergoing treatment, on Sunday. Pic/PTI
Actor-politician Vijay, chief of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), remained inside his campaign vehicle for an extended period at Velusamypuram on September 27, leading to overcrowding and restlessness among the gathering, the first information report (FIR) filed into the Tamil Nadu stampede probe has stated.
The death toll climbed to 41 on Monday after a 60-year-old woman succumbed to her injuries at the hospital, news agency PTI reported.
At least 60 people have also suffered injuries in the incident.
Police had advised Vijay not to visit the government hospital to meet the victims due to the sensitive law-and-order situation, PTI reported, quoting a TVK source.
“Initially, he had planned to visit the injured and console them, but was informed that his presence might cause further crowding,” a senior TVK leader said.
Police have not registered a case against the actor-turned-politician, but three senior TVK functionaries have been named in the FIR — Karur North District Secretary Mathiazhagan, state General Secretary Bussy Anand, and Deputy General Secretary Nirmal Kumar, PTI reported.
On Monday, retired Justice Aruna Jagadeesan, who heads the one-member inquiry commission set up by the state government into the Tamil Nadu stampede, continued the probe and interacted with patients at the government hospital. She later said a detailed report would be submitted once the investigation was complete.
The three party functionaries have been booked under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 110 (attempt to commit culpable homicide), 125 (endangering life of others), and 223 (disobedience to order) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with section 3 of the Tamil Nadu Public Property (Prevention of Damage and Loss) Act, 1992.
According to the police, the narrow venue could not accommodate the large numbers. The crowd surged forward to get a closer glimpse of Vijay, leading to the stampede. In the ensuing chaos, police resorted to a lathi-charge to restore order, while several fainted and were rushed to the Karur government hospital.
The FIR said that people climbed steel sheds and trees for a better view. When these collapsed, they fell on the crowd below, triggering the deadly stampede. Several died of suffocation and crush injuries.
Chief Minister MK Stalin, who visited the victims, announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh each for the families of the victims and assured that “appropriate action” would be taken on the basis of the probe commission’s findings. Police protection at the hospital has been intensified.
Meanwhile, former Telangana Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan said the inquiry was unlikely to be impartial as it would not examine police lapses.
“I have been in the administration. I can say that the Commission’s probe would not be partial because there has been a police intelligence failure. The police failed to take note of the swelling numbers at the rally spot,” she said in Chennai, adding, that senior officers had not visited the venue to regulate the crowd and that no police officer had faced suspension for the incident.
Expelled AIADMK leader VK Sasikala, who met the affected families, demanded a probe by a central agency.
“The power went off within minutes after the meeting concluded, and when it returned, people had already started rushing. The truth will emerge only when the matter is investigated thoroughly by a central agency,” she said.
(With PTI inputs)
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