MADURAI: The Madurai bench of the Madras High Court on Monday orally instructed the government counsels to get instructions from state authorities on the compensation proposed to be paid to the victims of the cracker unit blast in Kattanarpatti village in Virudhunagar on Sunday.
A bench of justices N Sathish Kumar and M Jothiraman raised the question following a request made by a counsel, R Karunanidhi, asking the court to take suo motu cognisance of the incident to ensure proper relief to the victims.
Karunanidhi, in his letter to the registry, highlighted that on May 16, 2025, a single judge of the court had issued a series of directions regarding payment of compensation to victims of cracker unit accidents, formulation of insurance and rehabilitation schemes, ensuring safety measures to prevent future accidents, among others. The order was challenged by the state government, and the matter is pending before the division bench, he added.
He further opined the recurring accidents demonstrate systemic failure and the present incident, which occurred despite the earlier court order, indicated that without judicial oversight, lives would continue to be lost.
Already the state has not paid proper compensation to victims in past accidents, he alleged. Since the state is preparing for the Assembly election, he feared that there would be further delay in providing compensation to the victims of the present incident and sought the court’s intervention.
Besides seeking the state’s response regarding compensation, the judges also directed the registry to list the previous cases relating to the issue on Tuesday.