Tamil actor Vijay’s political outfit, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), has approached the Supreme Court challenging the Madras High Court’s order constituting a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the Karur stampede of September 27, which claimed 41 lives and left over 60 injured.
A bench led by Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran agreed on Wednesday to hear TVK’s plea on Friday, taking note of a lawyer’s request to list the matter urgently. The plea has been filed through TVK’s secretary Aadhav Arjuna.
On Tuesday, the same bench had scheduled a separate plea filed by BJP leader Uma Anandan for hearing on October 10, challenging the high court’s refusal to order a CBI investigation into the incident. The court said TVK’s petition will be heard along with this plea on Friday.
In its petition, TVK argued that an independent investigation under the supervision of the Supreme Court is essential to ensure fairness and impartiality. The party has objected to the Madras High Court’s decision to form a SIT consisting solely of Tamil Nadu police officers, contending that this could compromise the integrity of the probe.
The stampede took place during a rally organised by TVK in Karur, Tamil Nadu. Police reports said that around 27,000 people turned up for the event, nearly three times the expected crowd of 10,000. Authorities also noted that a seven-hour delay by actor Vijay in reaching the venue contributed to crowd restlessness, ultimately triggering the fatal incident.
