Chennai: A massive crowd surge at actor-politician Vijay’s campaign rally Saturday evening at Velusamypuram in Tamil Nadu’s Karur spiralled into a chaos, leaving at least 31 people, including 16 women and six children, dead and more than 50 injured.
Vijay was scheduled to campaign for his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Namakkal and Karur districts Saturday. The actor-politician was supposed to begin his campaign in Namakkal at 8.45 am, but came to the venue around 2.45 pm, and spoke for about 15 minutes before rushing to Karur.
Vijay was supposed to have begun his rally at Karur at 12.45 pm, but reached the venue around 7.30 pm. Eyewitnesses told ThePrint there was a huge rush of people and a chaos set in as they jostled to see him.
“We were all waiting since morning. But, as soon as Vijay reached the spot, people started pushing forward towards the barricades to catch a glimpse of Vijay on the campaign bus. Suddenly, people at the front started collapsing and children started screaming. It was suffocating… somehow we managed to get out of the crowd,” M. Selvi, a 40-year-old woman from Kulithalai, told ThePrint.
As he saw the crowd surge, Vijay halted his speech , appealing to the people to stay calm. Volunteers were seen distributing water bottles among the people. But the situation spiralled beyond the control of the volunteers and the police personnel deployed in security.
Minister Senthil Balaji told reporters in Karur that as many as 31 people have died in the incident and some are being treated at hospitals.
“So far, 31 people have died and a few more are admitted to emergency wards. All the doctors are asked to report to duty. Some of them (the injured) have been referred to government hospitals in Trichy and Erode,” Balaji said.
According to police sources, the TVK had sought permission from police for a rally, stating it expected a crowd of 10,000.
“However, more than a lakh people gathered and the TVK flouted all the rules imposed by the police. In fact, the party leader did not come to the venue at the given time. A case has been registered against the TVK functionaries and a probe is on,” a senior official in Karur police told ThePrint.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths in the “unfortunate incident”.
“My thoughts are with the families who have lost their loved ones. Wishing strength to them in this difficult time. Praying for a swift recovery to all those injured,” he said in a post on X.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin is likely to visit Karur on Sunday. In a post on X, he said that the news coming from Karur was concerning.
“I have contacted and instructed former minister V. Senthilbalaji, Health Minister Ma. Subramanian and the District Collector to provide the necessary immediate treatment to people who fainted in the crowd congestion and have been admitted to the hospital,” he said in his post.
Ambulances rushed the injured to the Karur Government Hospital. At least 18 people were declared dead at Karur itself, while others succumbed while going to Tiruchirappalli and Erode referral hospitals. Doctors said many had suffered crush injuries and respiratory failure.
Opposition leaders, including the AIADMK’s Edappadi K. Palaniswami, PMK founder Ramadoss have demanded accountability from both TVK rally organisers and state government for failing to ensure basic crowd safety.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
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