Vijay’s team had flagged fan frenzy could lead to stampedes: Report

Thalapathy Vijay

A close aide of actor-turned-politician Vijay had cautioned more than a year ago that fan frenzy at his rallies could trigger stampedes. One of his aides had told India Today Digital in February 2024, soon after Vijay launched his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), that they feared fan frenzy could lead to stampedes.

He said the biggest challenge for his team was how to get him to campaign without leading to chaos.

Concerns were not limited to his inner circle. Weeks before the Karur tragedy, the Madras High Court warned that if safety lapses continued at Vijay’s events, fatalities were possible, News18 reported. The court asked the DMK-led government who would take responsibility in case of deaths and directed that uniform safety rules be applied to political gatherings across parties.

On Saturday, the feared scenario unfolded. A stampede at Vijay’s rally in Karur killed 40 people, including nine children, according to officials. Permission had been granted for 10,000 attendees, but police estimated nearly 27,000 were present, with some reports suggesting close to 50,000.

Many had followed Vijay’s convoy from Namakkal, where he had held another meeting earlier in the day. Panic spread after Vijay announced about a missing girl, while a tree branch carrying several people snapped, triggering the surge.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has ordered a judicial probe. Vijay expressed shock on X, writing, “In a way that defies imagination, thinking about what happened in Karur yesterday…” and announced Rs 20 lakh for families of the deceased.

Veteran journalist TR Jawahar said he had long feared such a situation, reported India Today Digital. “The throngs all through his last few meetings were terrifying for a political observer of many decades like me, just for this precarious prospect. I never saw Vijay through any other prism other than the potential for damage and danger,” he told India Today.

Vijay’s popularity has been compared to that of MG Ramachandran and Rajinikanth. A team member described him as part of Tamil Nadu’s “primary league” of stars with political potential, saying, “Vijay comes in the league of MK Thyagaraja Bhagavathar, MGR and Rajinikanth. If you want the [CM’s] chair, you have to come from the primary lineage.”

Stampedes remain a recurring tragedy in India. In 2024 alone, 11 people died at a cricket rally in Bengaluru, six at a temple festival in Goa, 18 at New Delhi Railway Station, and 37 at the Mahakumbh. Investigations often cite overcrowding, inadequate exits, and poor planning, but preventive steps are rarely implemented.

The Karur incident has renewed scrutiny of crowd control at celebrity-driven political events. The warnings from aides, observers, and even the High Court have now proven prescient.