Karur (Tamil Nadu), Sept 29: The death toll in the tragic stampede at actor-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) political rally in Tamil Nadu’s Karur has risen to 41 after an elderly woman succumbed to her injuries.
The deceased, identified as Sukuna (65) from Velusamipuram, succumbed to her injuries late last night.
As per reports, Sukuna, an employee of a private company, went missing after the rally. Her relatives later discovered that she had been admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) of Karur Government Hospital. Despite receiving treatment, she succumbed to her injuries.
It is worth noting that the tragedy occurred on Saturday evening at Velayudhampalayam, where thousands had gathered to attend the political rally of Vijay’s TVK. Witnesses reported that the crowd grew beyond capacity, and as people pushed forward to catch a glimpse of the TVK leader, chaos broke out. A brief power outage reportedly worsened the panic.
In the ensuing crush, many were trapped in narrow exit lanes, with several fainting and being trampled. By Sunday night, 34 bodies had been identified and handed over to their families. Over 80 others were injured, some critically.
Emergency services faced difficulties transporting victims to hospitals, with ambulances working through the night to provide aid.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the incident as “heart-rending” and announced an ex gratia of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and Rs 50,000 for the injured.
Chief Minister M.K. Stalin also declared Rs 10 lakh compensation for each family of the deceased and ordered a judicial inquiry, led by retired High Court judge Aruna Jagadeesan, to investigate any safety lapses.
Vijay called the deaths “an irreparable loss” and expressed that his heart was “overwhelmed with profound heaviness.” He pledged to provide personal compensation of Rs 20 lakh to each bereaved family and Rs 2 lakh to the injured, promising full support to the victims.
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