Karur stampede: All leaders have right to campaign with limit, says Udhayanidhi Stalin

He also noted that the one-man commission appointed to probe the incident will submit its report after a full investigation, and based on that report, the government will take appropriate action.

Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin consoles bereaved family members and relatives of victims, who died after a stampede at actor-politician Vijay's rally on Saturday, at the Government Hospital, in Karur district, Tamil Nadu, early Sunday, Sept. 28, 2025. Photo | PTI

KARUR: Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin said on Sunday that he did not wish to speak politics over the tragic incident and assured that necessary measures would be taken to prevent such occurrences in the future.

Udhayanidhi also said that a Commission led by retired judge Aruna Jagadeesan would arrive in Karur later in the day to probe the stampede incident.

He added that the commission will submit a report after a full investigation, and Chief Minister M K Stalin would take appropriate action based on the report submitted by the panel.

Speaking to the reporters after meeting and consoling the kin of deceased and the injured at Karur government medical college hospital this morning, Udhayanidhi stated that "All leaders have the right to campaign and meet their supporters, and no one can stop that," he said.

When asked about opposition leader Edappadi K Palaniswami’s accusation that there were lapses in security at Veluchamipuram, where the campaign took place on Saturday, Udhayanidhi said, “Just two days ago, he campaigned at the same place. All leaders have the right to campaign and meet their cadres, no one can stop that. The police only request that certain things be avoided. Beyond that, it is the responsibility of party leaders and second-tier leaders to guide their supporters,” he added.

He stated that the government has been doing everything required on its part and will take the necessary steps to prevent such accidents in the future. “So, instead of talking about what has happened, we must ensure that such incidents do not occur again,” he said.

Udhayanidhi said, “A total of seven ministers are on the ground in Karur. We met all the relatives of the victims in person at the hospital and consoled them. No matter how much we console, we cannot compensate for the loss of loved ones.”

Out of the 39 deceased, the bodies of 30 victims have been handed over to their relatives after post-mortem examinations. The remaining bodies will be released to their respective families once the post-mortems are completed.