Eyewitnesses at the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) rally in Karur, Tamil Nadu, have provided harrowing accounts of the chaos that led to a deadly stampede, which tragically claimed at least 39 lives, including women and children. The consensus among those present points to a dangerous combination of massive overcrowding and severe organizational lapses as the primary cause of the disaster.
Crowd Size Overwhelms Safety Measures
The rally, held at Velusamypuram on the Karur–Erode highway for TVK chief and actor-politician Vijay’s ‘Velicham Veliyeru’ (‘Let There Be Light’) campaign meeting, saw a turnout far exceeding expectations.
According to local reports and police sources, though permission for the event was granted for around 30,000 participants, the actual crowd swelled to nearly 60,000 people, many of whom had converged from surrounding districts via foot, tractors, and buses.
One eyewitness, Nanda Kumar, acknowledged the immense challenge posed by the numbers, telling news agency ANI:
“We were there ourselves. Nothing could be done to control the crowd… Even if proper safety measures were in place, what can anyone do if ten or fifteen times more people show up than expected? This was a serious mistake.”
Star’s Delay Exacerbated the Crisis
A significant factor contributing to the crowd’s restlessness and the eventual panic was the prolonged delay in Vijay’s arrival.
Eyewitnesses noted that the actor, who was scheduled to arrive by early afternoon, did not reach the venue until almost six hours later. This long, anxious wait amplified the energy and desperation of the gathering.
Kumar elaborated on the emotional toll this took on the attendees: “People had come expecting him (Vijay) to arrive on time; many were accompanied by children, were hungry, or faced difficult situations. Everyone came with the enthusiasm of wanting to see a star. This is deeply distressing.”
The Moment of Tragedy
The situation became critical around 8 pm when the huge crowd, which was double the permitted size, surged forward as Vijay began addressing the gathering from atop his campaign vehicle. The crush overwhelmed the barricades, leading to a stampede where people were trampled and suffered suffocating injuries.
A woman from Namakkal, P. Sivasankari, recounted the horrifying scene as she watched her neighbor collapse:
“We shouted for help, but no one could move. People fell on top of each other. We could not breathe.”
Another tragedy was recounted by a father who lost his 12-year-old daughter in the crush. “She just fainted. We thought she would be fine. But when we found her again, she was gone,” he said.
Rescue Efforts Hampered
The immense crowd density also severely hindered rescue operations. Eyewitness Suriya recounted the devastating consequence for those in need of immediate help:
“Ambulances couldn’t get in. There wasn’t enough space for people to stand. It took a very long time to bring people out,” he said, emphasizing how the tightly packed crowd hampered the movement of emergency vehicles, delaying the rescue process.
In a desperate attempt to help, Vijay halted his speech mid-way when party workers sounded the alarm about people fainting. He was seen throwing water bottles into the crowd, announcing that a child was missing, and urgently appealing to the police before abruptly ending his address.
Following the tragic event, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin announced an ex-gratia payment of ₹10 lakh to the families of the deceased and ₹1 lakh for those injured, even as the state government launches a comprehensive probe into the safety failures. Actor Vijay also took to social media to express his profound grief over the loss of lives.