‘Something is wrong with India’s crowd management’: Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Karur stampede

Congress MP urges strict national protocols after Tamil Nadu rally tragedy kills 39.

The Karur stampede in Tamil Nadu that left 39 people dead during a rally addressed by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief and actor Vijay has reignited questions about India’s fragile crowd management practices.

According to ANI, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor called the incident 'heartbreaking' and pressed for urgent action, arguing that such disasters have become disturbingly common across the country.

Tharoor: ‘Every year, there seems to be an incident’

Speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, Tharoor said India’s repeated stampede tragedies reveal systemic flaws.

“It’s a very tragic and painful situation. Something is wrong in our country with crowd management. Every year, there seems to be an incident,” he said.

Tharoor recalled past stampedes, including the one in Bengaluru, and said it was especially painful when children were among the victims. He said that beyond political blame games, India needs a national policy to ensure safety at large gatherings, ANI reported.

Call for strict rules and protocols

Tharoor argued that whether people gather to hear a politician, a movie star, or a cricketer, the basic right to safety must be guaranteed.

“There should be certain rules, standards, and protocols in place,” he said, adding that both the Centre and state governments must agree on “very strict procedures” for crowd control.

He urged that without clear national standards, tragedies like Karur will continue to claim innocent lives.

Prime Minister announces relief

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed condolences and announced compensation for victims’ families. Each family of the deceased will receive Rs 2 lakh from the PM National Relief Fund (PMNRF), while the injured will get Rs 50,000 each.

The Prime Minister’s Office posted on X: “PM Narendra Modi has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF to be given to the next of kin of each deceased in the unfortunate incident at a political rally in Karur, Tamil Nadu. The injured would be given Rs 50,000.”