In Karur, Tamil Nadu, the fierce stampede on Saturday night raised questions of political campaigning and public safety together. The crowd became uncontrollable at the rally-event of Tamilaga Vetti Kazhagam organized under the leadership of actor-royal Thalapathi Vijay and according to official reports, 39 bodies have been brought to government hospitals; Of these, 38 were identified and post-mortem process is going on, while dozens of injured are hospitalized and some are said to be critical. Hospital officials said that a total of 39 bodies reached the government hospital and so far 31 have been post-mortem; At present, the condition of 2 people is critical.
According to the local administration and police, the incident occurred on Saturday evening when the big gathering gathered at the rally venue after tired and long wait. The crowd became uncontrolled here. Officials said that the incident came to light during the rally while addressing Vijay’s stage. Some reports states that the situation worsened due to the delay of the artist-leader and due to heat and congestion. Many news agencies have explained the sudden increase in the crowd and the unconsciousness of the people as an important reason for the incident.
The state government and administrative machinery became active soon after the incident. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin called a meeting of higher officials at the Secretariat and ordered an inquiry into the developments; He announced an ex-gratia amount of Rs 10 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 1-1 lakh for the injured. The Chief Minister also directed to set up a Judicial Inquiry Commission. The commission will be led by retired Judge Aruna Jagdishen and further action will be taken based on the report of the Commission. The Union Home Ministry also sought a detailed report from the state government and assured to provide all possible assistance from the central level.
Karur-Sarkari Hospital and Regional Health Officers, who are managing the injured and bodies, said that plenty of oxygen and medicines are being provided to the patients and such resources have also been asked from other districts. Director of Medical Education Director Dr. Suganthi Rajkumari said that a total of 39 bodies reached the hospital, 31 has been post-mortem and some of the injured have been in critical condition. Experts and staff from neighboring districts have also been sent on help for treatment. District Magistrate S. Saravanan said that so far 14 bodies have been handed over to the relatives and the identity of a woman is still incomplete. The process of handing over the dead body will be completed only after his identity.
After the incident, the state’s Deputy Chief Minister Udayanidhi Stalin (who returned from his foreign tour) paid tribute to the dead and visited the hospital to meet the injured patients; He informed that the inquiry commission will be made today, the Commission will talk to the affected people and submit its report and the Chief Minister will take appropriate steps on the basis of the report.
Udayanidhi also said that more than 345 doctors and nurses have been deployed from nearby districts so that there is no reduction in treatment. He assured the government to take full support to the victims and take steps to stop recurrence of such incidents.
Legal action also took place fast: The local police have filed an FIR against the organizers of the rally and some TVK leaders and employees and some senior officials and organizers have been named; The news report states that many officials of the organizer-group can be summoned under the serious sections related to safety violations and negligence. The police have also said that a special investigation will be initiated to find out the whole truth of the incident and the next steps will also include the role of organizers.
National and regional leaders expressed grief and sympathy in one voice. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Chief Minister of several states, Pinarayi Vijayan of Kerala, Hemant Soren of Jharkhand, Yogi Adityanath of Uttar Pradesh and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge expressed condolences to consolation and wished for early health benefits of the injured.
Amit Shah spoke to the Governor and Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and assured the central help and the Ministry of Home Affairs also requested the report to the state. Opposition and other parties also appealed to raise the available help quickly.
Both mourning and fury appeared in local circumstances. The business organization of Karur district made a shutdown for Sunday (today) and made mourning; At the same time, some viral videos and clips on social media raised questions on the atmosphere of developments and preparations for the organizers. In some clips it was claimed that during the rally, some time showed when efforts were being made and activities were conducted on the organizer, which intensified the post-factam debate over the request or delay-management.
The administration said that the truth and reference of video-viral will be investigated, but in general experts believe that such accidents develop in large public meetings that such accidents are developed if there is no proper arrangement for timely admissions, panel-management and immediate medical aid.
Questions have also been raised on the history of rally-organ and security provisions in such public programs. In the last few days, the administration had given instructions regarding the crowd in several TVK events and cases have already been registered against the organizers in some places. After the Karur incident, it is expected that the commission report will conduct an impartial investigation into the role of organizers, local administration and police and required strict disciplinary and punitive action will be suggested to reduce the risk of deaths in such public demolition in future.
Finally it is also a national-level warning: the number of people and emotional energy in electoral and publicity meetings remain high, but small managerial lapse can turn into major damage. With what happened in Karur, not only Karur-resident but citizens from Tamil Nadu and across the country will have to see how the standards of public safety should be strict and implemented in future.
Currently, the process of mourning is going on in Karur, the final identity and transfer work of the bodies is being completed, the injured are being treated and only after the report of the Commission-Center, it will be clear what action is taken. The state government has assured that they will take strict steps as per the report.
