Actor-politician Vijay has announced a personal ex-gratia payment of ₹20 lakh to the families of those who died in the Karur rally stampede and ₹2 lakh for the injured. This announcement follows the tragic incident at his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) rally on Saturday evening, which claimed the lives of at least 39 people and left 56 injured.
Vijay’s compensation is double the amount announced by the state government. The Tamil Nadu government, led by Chief Minister MK Stalin, had earlier announced a relief of ₹10 lakh for the kin of the deceased and ₹1 lakh for the injured, along with ordering a high-level judicial inquiry headed by a retired high court judge.
Vijay’s Statement of Grief
In a deeply emotional post on X (formerly Twitter), the TVK chief expressed his profound grief over the “irreparable loss.”
“The faces of all of you whom I have met keep flashing through my mind. The more I think of my loved ones who show affection and care, the more my heart slips further from its place,” Vijay wrote. “My heart and mind are overwhelmed with profound heaviness. In the midst of the immense grief of losing our loved ones, I am at a loss for words to express the pain my heart endures. My eyes and mind are clouded with sorrow.”
He assured that the ex-gratia was a duty he felt as a member of their family, even though “this amount is, of course, not significant in the face of such a loss.”
Police Pinpoint Late Arrival and Overcrowding
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu police have pointed to a significant delay in the actor’s arrival as a primary factor contributing to the tragedy.
DGP in-charge of Tamil Nadu, G Venkatraman, confirmed that the rally, which was scheduled to start at 3 PM, saw the TVK chief arrive only at 7:40 PM. The delay caused the already massive crowd to swell uncontrollably, with people having assembled since 11 AM.
The police official highlighted severe logistical failures, stating that the attendees were left waiting for hours “without sufficient food and water under the hot sun.” Organizers had initially sought permission for an estimated turnout of 10,000 people, but officials estimated that nearly three times that number—around 27,000—ultimately turned up for the event, overwhelming the venue and security arrangements.
The incident remains under investigation by the judicial commission announced by Chief Minister Stalin. “In the history of our state, never has such a large number of people lost their lives in a program organised by a political party, and such a tragedy should never happen in the future either,” Stalin remarked.