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New Delhi, October 13, 2025:
The Supreme Court on Monday transferred the probe into the Karur stampede—which left 41 people dead during a rally organised by Vijay’s Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK)—to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), citing the need for “independent and impartial scrutiny.”
A Bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and N.V. Anjaria also constituted a three-member monitoring committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ajay Rastogi to oversee the CBI’s investigation.
“Given the nature of the tragedy and its impact on citizens’ fundamental rights, the matter warrants a CBI probe under the supervision of an independent committee,” the court observed in its interim order.
The panel, under Justice Rastogi’s leadership, will be empowered to examine any issue linked to the tragedy to ensure fairness. The CBI has been directed to submit monthly progress reports to the committee. Justice Rastogi will also nominate two senior IPS officers from the Tamil Nadu cadre, who are not native to the State, to assist in monitoring the probe.
Emphasising the urgency of the matter, the Bench urged the committee to convene its first meeting immediately and complete the inquiry “as expeditiously as possible within the statutory period.”
SC Rebukes High Court Over Handling of Case
The top court was hearing a batch of petitions—including one by TVK—challenging the Madras High Court’s October 3 order that had accused party president Joseph Vijay and other leaders of fleeing the scene. The High Court had also constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by IG Asra Garg without hearing the party’s version.
Calling the order “insensitive and procedurally flawed,” the Supreme Court said the decision had “triggered unnecessary parallel proceedings.” It noted that the Madurai Bench, which held territorial jurisdiction over Karur, was already seized of related pleas—raising questions about judicial discipline.
“The single judge expanded the scope of the writ petition on his own, invoking extraordinary circumstances without any pleadings or prayer for an SIT, and passed orders without making TVK members parties to the case,” the Bench said while reading excerpts of its order.
The apex court also observed that the High Court ruling was “completely silent” on why it ignored the State government’s existing one-man commission of inquiry headed by a retired judge, constituted by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin to probe the incident.
Tragedy at the Rally
The stampede occurred on September 27 when an unexpectedly large crowd—around 25,000 attendees instead of the 10,000 permitted—gathered at a TVK event in Karur. Early findings cited poor crowd management, lack of basic amenities, and inadequate policing as key triggers.
Most victims were women and children who had travelled from different parts of western Tamil Nadu to see the actor-turned-politician. Following the incident, police booked several TVK office-bearers (excluding Vijay) on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, criminal negligence, and misrepresentation of crowd strength.
Supreme Court Seeks Accountability Report
In a strong observation, the apex court said it had “serious concerns about the functioning of the High Court registry” in the matter. It directed the Registrar General of the Madras High Court to submit a detailed report on how the case was listed as a criminal petition instead of being treated as a public interest litigation (PIL) on crowd management.
The Bench also instructed the registry to place the writ petition before a Division Bench for future hearings, reiterating that judicial propriety and process cannot be compromised, even in the face of tragedy.
[Newsroom staff written original, where key claims or facts are used, I’ve referenced the original sources (like Supreme Court of India – Official Order (October 13, 2025), Indian Express,
The Times of India, The Hindu, NDTV, etc.) transparently.]