CM Vijay announces memorial for Karur stampede victims, faults police for not informing him of the crowd
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced a memorial for victims of a recent stampede at his party's election rally in Karur. He criticized the local police for failing to manage crowd control and failing to alert him to the dangerous gathering size.
Why it matters
This highlights the political accountability of a high-profile leader and the operational challenges of managing massive political rallies in India.
Announcing that the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam would build a memorial for those who were killed in the stampede during its election campaign in Karur on September 27, 2025, party leader and Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay said on Friday (July 10, 2026) that the tragedy could have been averted had the police alerted him to the gathering of a huge crowd at Velusamypuram where he had addressed the rally.
Speaking at a public meeting held on the outskirts of Karur, Mr. Vijay, who visited the city for the first time after assuming office as the Chief Minister, said that during his election campaign earlier, the police had alerted him to the huge crowd gathered at Perambalur even when he was in Ariyalur and advised him to cancel the meeting. He had also agreed to the suggestion, considering the safety of the people.
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