Chennai: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader Vijay has been summoned to appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) again in New Delhi on Monday regarding the investigation into the Karur stampede.
The CBI has intensified its probe into the tragic stampede that occurred in Karur, Tamil Nadu, on September 27 last year, during a political campaign event addressed by Vijay.
The incident, in which 41 people lost their lives after being caught in a massive crowd surge, had sent shockwaves across the country and raised serious questions about crowd management and administrative preparedness.
The investigation is being monitored by a supervisory committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge Ajay Rastogi.
Under this oversight, the CBI has accelerated its inquiry, focusing on responsibility, planning failures, and the sequence of events that led to the deadly tragedy.
As part of the investigation, the CBI had last month questioned several senior TVK functionaries, including party general secretary Bussy Anand, Election Management Division general secretary Aadhav Arjun, joint general secretary Nirmal Kumar, and Karur district secretary Mathiyazhagan.
The agency recorded their statements to establish who organised the event, how preparations were made, and whether adequate safety measures were put in place.
Following these examinations, the CBI summoned Vijay to Delhi for questioning in connection with the case.
Acting on the summons, Vijay appeared at the CBI office at 11 a.m. on the 12th of this month.
He was questioned for nearly seven hours.
According to sources, investigators posed a series of detailed questions, including who was responsible for organising the Karur event, whether all arrangements were communicated to him in advance, why his arrival at the venue was delayed by several hours, and whether he or his team made any attempt to manage the crowd as congestion increased.
The CBI also sought clarifications on when Vijay first became aware of the overcrowding, whether administrators had warned him beforehand, and whether arrangements had been made for drinking water, secure entry and exit points, and overall crowd safety.
Sources indicated that Vijay responded to all questions put to him during the first round of interrogation. After completing the initial phase of questioning, the CBI team returned to Chennai.
However, following the Pongal festival, the agency issued a fresh summons asking Vijay to appear again in Delhi for further questioning on January 19.
In compliance, Vijay departed for Delhi by a private flight on Sunday evening at around 4 p.m.
On Monday, Vijay is expected to appear before the CBI for the second time, during which investigators are likely to continue their detailed examination as the probe into one of Tamil Nadu’s deadliest campaign-related tragedies enters a crucial phase.
(IANS)
