Sources in the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam say VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan’s demand that Mr. Vijay’s name be added to the FIR stems from the threat posed by the TVK to the VCK leader’s support base.
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Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi leader Thol. Thirumavalavan’s criticism of the Tamil Nadu government for not arraigning actor and TVK founder Vijay as an accused in the Karur stampede case has surprised many because he has precluded the possibility of an alliance with the fledgling party in future.
VCK general secretary D. Ravikumar said that while Mr. Thirumavalavan had so far tried to be soft on the account of Mr. Vijay’s inexperience in politics, he changed his mind after listening to Mr. Vijay’s video statement, in which he alluded to a conspiracy behind the death of 41 persons in the stampede.
“In 1999, when our leader first contested in the Chidambaram Lok Sabha constituency, there was rioting… and Scheduled Caste houses were attacked. Our leader was not even allowed to enter those areas and meet the victims. When he saw the pictures of the attacked houses, he wept uncontrollably. So, when Vijay shunned responsibility [for the stampede] and alluded to some conspiracy, our leader changed his stance,” he said.
At the same time, Mr. Ravikumar pointed out that the Dravidian movement had “cultivated a blind devotion” to film stars in the last 50 years. “Film personalities are participating in government functions. Myths and symbol are being taken more seriously. There is no difference between the death of people at Kumbh Mela and the tragedy in Karur. In the name of rationality, we denied the existence of Gods and replaced them with heroes. We denied idol worship, but replaced it with hero worship,” he said.
However, sources in the TVK said that Mr. Thirumavalavan demanding that Mr. Vijay’s name be added to the FIR and doubting whether the DMK had an understanding with the TVK stemmed from the threat posed to the VCK leader’s support base by the TVK. “The TVK is commanding support across communities. However, it is obvious that Mr. Thirumavalavan is trying to keep his support base together since the TVK is eating into it,” the sources said.
Published – October 03, 2025 11:10 pm IST
