Even as Chief Minister M.K. Stalin maintained that he would not make any political comment on the Karur stampede that claimed 39 lives, the incident has already sparked off a political storm in the state.
Thirty-nine people, including ten children, lost their lives in the stampede that broke out during a rally of actor-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay.
In a strongly worded statement, the Tamil Nadu BJP termed the incident as a “human-made calamity caused by gross negligence and administrative failure” and demanded decisive legal action against Vijay and his party organisers.
BJP state spokesperson A.N.S. Prasad blamed the event organisers and the Tamil Nadu Police for the “reckless crowd mismanagement” and “blatant disregard for public safety”.
He said the rally drew nearly 50,000 people against an official permit for about 10,000.
Prasad slammed Vijay for “arriving late” at the venue and noted that thousands of people were made to wait in sweltering heat without water, shade, or medical support.
“The suffering of the victims and their families cannot be brushed aside as an accident. This was preventable,” he said.
The BJP has also urged the Central government to send a ministerial team to Karur to console the bereaved families and oversee the probe.
Terming the incident “deeply shocking”, BJP’s former state president K. Annamalai criticised the Tamil Nadu government and the police for their “negligence”.
“For a political party's gathering, it is the responsibility of the police to accurately estimate the number of attendees, select an appropriate venue accordingly, and deploy an adequate number of police personnel to ensure the safety of the public attending the event,” he said.