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Vijay stayed inside vehicle for long at Karur rally, crowd grew restless: What FIR on stampede says
Police have not booked any case against the actor, but registered an FIR against three key functionaries of his party TVK
Actor-politician Vijay remained inside his campaign vehicle at Velusamypuram in Karur for an extended period during his September 27 rally, which led to restlessness among the crowd, according to an FIR into the stampede which killed at least 41 people, news agency PTI has reported.
The police have not filed any case against Vijay, but registered the FIR against three key leaders of his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).
As for his plans, if any, to visit the victims and their families, a TVK source told PTI that Vijay was asked by the police not to do so due to the sensitive law and order situation.
Videos shared by the TVK social media handles from that day showed large crowds as Vijay kept emerging onto the roof of his campaign truck during the Karur event to greet the crowds.
What are charges on TVK leaders for Karur rally stampede?
The three TVK key functionaries named in the FIR are: the party's Karur North district secretary Mathiazhagan, state general secretary Bussy Anand, and deputy general secretary Nirmal Kumar.
Charges against them include those 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 (Preventing of Damage and Loss) Act 1992, a police official told the news agency.
The death toll increased to 41 on Monday, with a 60-year-old woman succumbing to her injuries.
Also on Monday, the one-person probe panel of Justice (retd) Aruna Jagadeesan continued with the investigation as she spoke with victims admitted to the government hospital. She later said that she would submit a detailed report to the government once the probe was completed, PTI said.
What caused Karur stampede, as per FIR
According to the police, Vijay remained inside his campaign vehicle at Velusamypuram, the venue where the stampede occurred, for an extended period, leading to overcrowding and restlessness among those gathered.
The situation went out of control as the crowd surged forward for a closer glimpse of Vijay, the police told PTI, adding that the “narrow” venue hardly afforded space for so many people.
Many in the crowd had climbed over steel sheds and trees to get a better view. When these collapsed, they fell on those below, resulting in the stampede, in which people died due to suffocation and crush injuries, the FIR said.
Police said they resorted to a lathicharge in a bid to restore order. Many who fainted at the venue were rushed to the Karur government hospital, they added.
Following the tragic incident, Vijay was advised against visiting the government hospital here as his presence might cause crowding at the hospital premises, the TVK source told the news agency. "Initially, he had planned to visit the injured and console them," a senior TVK leader said.
‘Police intelligence failure’
BJP leader and former Telangana governor Tamilisai Soundararajan, meanwhile, has said the one-person inquiry commission was unlikely to be impartial.
"I have been in 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," Soundararajan told reporters in Chennai.
None of the police officials has faced government action like suspension for the tragic incident, she added.
