Actor Vijay Rally Stampede: 20 People, Including Children, are Feared Dead in Karur Stampede

Chennai – Tamil Nadu: A deadly stampede that occurred at a TVK (Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam) political rally in Tamil Nadu’s Karur District has caused multiple deaths. Authorities have confirmed 10 fatalities and are preparing for at least another 10 casualties. This tragic event has shocked the entire state, and it raises serious concerns about how large crowds are managed at political rallies.

It was a stampede that occurred at a political event where thousands of TVK supporters had assembled to listen to Vijay, the TVK’s chief. NDTV was told by police sources that several people had fainted near a point in the rally where thousands of supporters were gathered to hear TVK chief Vijay speak. This caused a series of events that culminated in the stampede.

A senior policeman at the scene said that approximately 30,000 people were gathered at the Karur district venue, where Vijay had been scheduled to speak to the crowd after his rally earlier in Namakkal. When the arrival of the politician was delayed for more than six hours, the crowds grew uncontrollably.

A powder keg was created by the prolonged waiting in conditions that appeared inadequate for crowd control. The crowd surge caused people to stumble and trip, which led to the deadly stampede. The emergency services arrived on the scene, but it was too late.

MK Stalin, the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, expressed his grief and shock over this tragedy in a social media post. The Chief Minister acted immediately, ordering medical attention for all those injured and fainted in the accident.

The reports from Karur are saddening. Stalin posted that he had ordered the treatment of those who were fainting and asked Senthil, former Minister, Health, to assist. Stalin also sent senior police and administrative officials to restore order and manage the situation.

The Chief Minister has assigned the Additional Direct General of Police to restore normalcy. The Chief Minister also instructed Anbil Mahesh, the Minister of the Interior, to provide immediate assistance to affected families.

Stalin issued a public call to citizens asking them to work with the police to deal with the after-effects of the tragic event and to investigate what led to the loss of so many lives.

This incident raised concerns over safety protocol at political gatherings. There are questions about the crowd control and emergency exit route planning, and marking.

Medical teams have worked around the clock in Karur to treat the injured. The state government announced it would cover all the medical costs for injured people.

The tragedy is a reminder that crowd control and safety are important at public events. The political parties and the event organizers need to ensure adequate safety measures in order to avoid such an incident in the future.

Authorities have promised a full investigation to determine the circumstances leading to this stampede.