Big Relief for Vijay as SC Hands Over Karur Case to CBI

In a major development, the Supreme Court has ordered a CBI investigation into the tragic Karur stampede, which occurred on September 27 during actor Vijay’s political party Tamizha Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) rally, claiming 41 lives.

A bench of Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice N.V. Anjaria said the incident “has shaken the national conscience” and deserves a fair and impartial investigation. The Court stated that citizens have a right to a fair probe, especially in cases affecting fundamental rights.

To ensure transparency, the Supreme Court also set up a three-member Supervisory Committee led by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ajay Rastogi. Justice Rastogi will select two senior IPS officers, not native to Tamil Nadu, to assist him. The CBI will submit monthly progress reports to this committee.

The Court came down heavily on the Madras High Court (Chennai Bench) for forming a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Tamil Nadu Police in a petition that originally sought only a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for political rallies. The Supreme Court noted that the Karur case falls under the Madurai Bench’s jurisdiction and the Chennai Bench had no right to take it up.

The Court also questioned why TVK was allowed to hold the rally when AIADMK’s request for the same venue was earlier rejected for safety reasons. It also raised concerns about how postmortems of 30–40 victims were done at midnight, followed by cremations at 4 a.m.

The order is seen as a setback for the Tamil Nadu government and a relief for Vijay and TVK, who had demanded an independent probe. The State has been given eight weeks to file its reply, while the CBI begins its inquiry under the watch of the Supreme Court-appointed committee.

Now, the political opportunity that the DMK got in the last 10 days and resulting bashing towards Vijay would now get completely steamed down and has given enough time for Vijay to rework and come back to continue with his election campaigns. This also gives much needed support for Vijay to form coalitions with the other parties in the elections context.