The size of the crowd doubled at the meeting spot as the people, who accompanied TVK president Vijay’s vehicle, also joined those who were already waiting there.
| Photo Credit: M Moorthy
A combination of factors, mainly poor planning and insufficient security, led to the stampede that claimed 38 lives and injured at least 65 others at the TVK rally in Karur. Most of the adult victims were between 18 to 30 years of age.
It is learnt that TVK functionaries presented a list of four spots, including the Bus Stand roundabout and Light House in Karur, for the TVK meeting. Since all four places were thickly populated business areas, the police refused permission. Instead, the police granted permission for the meeting at Velusamypuram on Karur-Erode Road, where AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami held a rally on Thursday (September 25, 2025).
The organisers had announced that TVK president Vijay would speak at 12 noon. The crowd began to assemble from 9 a.m., but he did not arrive at the scheduled time.
The crowd slowly grew in size as the day progressed. There were roughly less than 4,000 people by 2 p.m. The supporters, who came from different parts of Karur and nearby Erode and Coimbatore districts, began to surge around 4 p.m., after learning that Mr. Vijay was on his way to Karur after having completed a rally in Namakkal.
Many of them, including women with children and girls, continued to wait for him in spite of the scorching sun, some of them even skipped lunch to keep their spots. The organisers kept playing specially penned campaign songs to engage the crowd.
The crowd continued to surge towards the spot where Mr. Vijay’s bus was supposed to be parked. Though Mr. Vijay reached the road overbridge in Karur, which was less than a kilometre from the meeting spot, around 6 p.m., he could reach the designated spot only at 7 p.m.
The size of the crowd doubled at the meeting spot as the people, who accompanied Mr. Vijay’s vehicle, also joined those who were already waiting there. The problem began when the crowd were forced to make way for Mr. Vijay’s vehicle. This ended in the stampede. The fans, who could not move further behind, began fainting. They fell on a shed, where a generator and a outside broadcast van of a television, had been positioned.
“I was pushed down by the crowd all of a sudden. There was absolutely no space to move. I subsequently fainted,” said B. Kanishka, a survivor. “Upon noticing me being pushed down by an uncontrollable crowd, my friend acted swiftly to move me to a safer place. The situation could have been averted if the people were not forced to wait for hours together. Poor planning and execution of the programme and lack of police personnel at the spot were also the reason,” said Karthick of Erode.
Expressing shock over the incident, actor and MNM leader Kamal Haasan said, “It is heart-rending. I offer my deepest condolences to the innocent people who lost their lives in the crowd crush.” He urged the State government to ensure proper medical treatment for those rescued and adequate relief for the affected.
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K. Selvaperunthagai expressed grief over the incident. He said this tragic event should serve as a critical lesson for future public gatherings. He urged all political parties and organisations to prioritise the safety of attendees when planning such events, ensuring adequate medical emergency services, police arrangements, clear exit routes, and effective crowd control measures.
Mr. Selvaperunthagai urged the authorities to implement strict guidelines to prevent the recurrence of similar tragedies.
In a post on X, State BJP president Nainar Nagenthran said: “I have requested senior leaders of @BJP4TamilNadu to immediately rush to the hospital and extend all necessary assistance to those affected. I have also instructed the BJP district president of Karur to provide immediate and appropriate support to the victims.”
The Karur district administration has set up emergency helplines for those seeking information on victims of the stampede. Residents can contact the District Collectorate Emergency Control Room at 04324-256306 or via WhatsApp at 7010806322.
(With inputs from Geetha Srimathi in Chennai)
Published – September 28, 2025 12:47 am IST
