Popular Tamil actor-politician Vijay.
Credit: X/@ActorVijay
New Delhi: Tamil Actor Vijay's political party, Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam has filed a plea in the Supreme Court seeking an independent investigation led by a former apex court judge into the Karur stampede, which claimed 41 lives and left scores others injured.
The party challenged validity of an order passed by the Madras High Court which directed setting up of a special investigation team (SIT) headed by senior IPS officer Asra Garg to probe the incident.
The plea contended that despite making an observation, which questioned the independence of the police probe into the matter, the high court directed the constitution of an SIT composed solely of three senior officers from the Tamil Nadu Police.
It stated that the petitioner-party, as well as its leader, is prejudiced by the order which appoints an SIT composed solely of officers of the state police, despite the high court expressing its discontent with the independence of the state police and its conduct.
The petitioner party claimed that a pre-planned conspiracy by certain miscreants to create trouble at the rally site cannot be ruled out as a cause of the stampede, while seeking an independent probe.
The plea contended that certain strong observations made by the high court against TVK have caused severe prejudice to the political party and its office-bearers.
On October 7, the court agreed to hear a plea on October 10, challenging the refusal of the Madras High Court to direct a CBI probe into the Karur stampede during the rally of actor-turned-politician Vijay. In the stampede, on September 27, 2025, 41 people were killed and over 100 others were injured. The stampede occurred during a rally by the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), led by actor-politician Vijay at Karur.
In a related development, advocate and Tamil Nadu BJP leader G S Mani filed a plea in the top court, assailing the high court's October 3 order, declining to transfer probe into the matter to the CBI, claiming that the state authorities were suspect in the matter owing to their serious lapse resulting into the tragedy.