Chennai, Oct 3 Expressing pain over the loss of lives, the Madras High Court on Friday constituted a special investigation team (SIT) under IPS officer Asra Garg to probe the Karur stampede, which claimed 41 lives on September 27.
“Watching the videos is painful,” said Justice N Senthilkumar, expressing shock that only two people had been arrested so far in connection with the incident.
The High Court pulled up the Tamilaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) leaders and organisers of the rally by actor-turned-politician Vijay for their failure to rescue the public and children, and for not taking responsibility for the incident.
“Whether they are leaders or party workers, after this incident, while the President, Prime Minister, Chief Minister, and all political parties expressed grief and engaged in rescue efforts, the organisers of the event — the party members — had completely walked away,” said the court.
While constituting the SIT, Justice Senthilkumar directed the Karur Police to immediately hand over all case documents related to the stampede to the probe panel.
In a related matter, the High Court reserved its decision on the anticipatory bail plea of TVK General Secretary Bussi Anand and Deputy General Secretary Nirmal Kumar. The court did not specify a date for delivering its decision.
Earlier, the High Court took note of an accident involving Vijay’s campaign and asked, “Has a case been registered in this regard?”
In the backdrop of the surfacing of videos of the alleged accident, the court said, “What prevents registering a case? Even if no complaint is given, the police must file one.”
In a related matter, a division bench of M. Dhandapani and M. Jothiraman rejected a petition filed by BJP leader Uma Anandan seeking a CBI probe into the stampede but gave the petitioner the liberty to approach the court if the investigation is not done properly.
“Don’t treat this court as a political arena,” said the court, questioning the petitioner’s locus standi in the matter.
“If aggrieved persons come to this court, we will rescue,” said the court, asking the petitioner to first let the investigation into the September 27 incident at Karur move forward from its current initial stage.
The BJP leader had sought High Court direction for a probe by the CBI into the incident, claiming that the fatalities were linked to alleged official apathy.
The High Court passed the order while hearing a clutch of petitions. Some petitions taken had sought an enhancement in compensation announced by the authorities for the victims.
The bench took note of the Tamil Nadu government’s suggestion to frame standard operating procedures (SoPs) in respect of rallies or meetings, disallowing events near state or national highways.
The court suggested that in future, when such political rallies or meetings are held at designated places, the government and political parties must ensure that there are proper arrangements for drinking water and sanitation.
The bench also said that escape routes and parking facilities should be provided to minimise the chances of stampedes.
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