An avoidable tragedy: On the TVK rally, the stampede in Karur
Police must not allow roadshows in dense locations
Effective crowd management at mass gatherings demands the cooperation of organisers and attendees. However, when popular film stars attempt to convert their frenzied fan base into political capital, crowd management and safety are often compromised. This was tragically demonstrated in Tamil Nadu’s worst political rally disaster, that left 40 people, including children, dead, at Velusamypuram in Karur during actor-politician C. Joseph Vijay’s campaign, on Saturday night (September 27, 2025). Since September 13, 2025, when the Kollywood megastar launched his “weekend-only” roadshows, promoting his fledgling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) as an alternative to the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), restrictions have been breached and common sense sidelined. Mr. Vijay has resisted police restrictions, labelling them as a political move to stifle his growth. The TVK even approached the Madras High Court, which, concerned over the damage to public properties caused by his supporters, wanted the government to collect deposits from political parties as collateral. From the comfort of his campaign caravan, Mr. Vijay did little to prevent crowds along his route from joining in, paralysing traffic and delaying his arrival at meeting venues by several hours. Youths climbed electricity poles, transformers and rooftops, and clung to trees, and families held up vulnerable children just to catch a glimpse of the actor. Yet, there was no effective corrective action either from the organisers or the police personnel.
At Karur, the crowd, which was modest at noon, the scheduled time, swelled by the time he reached at 7.20 p.m. as supporters gathered after work hours. When they surged forward to hear him speak, many fainted or were crushed due to compressive asphyxia. Police say there was a significant mismatch between the turnout projected by the TVK — 10,000 people — and the actual turnout — over 27,000. The government responded swiftly to the tragedy, arranging medical aid, overnight autopsies, and the prompt handing over of the bodies to grieving families. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who arrived in Karur past midnight, did the right thing by not politicising the tragedy and instead entrusting the probe to a commission of inquiry. The commission must look beyond the TVK’s lapses and examine whether the police had acted independently, especially in denying the TVK its preferred venues to accommodate a larger gathering. Going forward, Mr. Vijay and the police must act to prevent such tragedies. The actor must make more frequent appearances to dispel the aura of mystique and abandon the practice of using roadshows as a show of strength. And the police must insist that all massive political meetings be held in open, spacious venues and not in dense locations.