Key Points

Visiting the injured in hospitals, Ramadoss described the incident as "very unfortunate" and stressed that it could have been avoided.

"It is very unfortunate that an incident happened in Karur, a stampede happened during the rally of actor Vijay. And till now, more than 40 people have died. I have come to visit the injured in the hospital. We are very saddened by this incident. It should have been avoided, and it could have been avoided," Ramadoss told ANI.

He added, "And right now I don't want to pin the blame on anybody, but everybody has to take the blame, right from the police, right from the political party and also the general public as well, who attended that meeting along with children and women."

Ramadoss further emphasised that the stampede reflected a failure of police intelligence. He said, "I believe this is a failure of police intelligence. They should have been more responsible and anticipated the crowd. They have given permission in a very narrow street...The movie culture in Tamil Nadu, I think, is something that we need to address..."

The death toll from the stampede at actor Vijay's political rally for the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) in Tamil Nadu's Karur on Saturday evening has risen to 40.

The massive crowd at Vijay's rally reportedly turned chaotic, triggering panic. Several attendees fainted and were rushed to nearby hospitals. Sources had said that overcrowding at the venue led to the tragedy.

Chief Minister MK Stalin visited the Government Medical College and Hospital in Karur late Saturday night, met the injured, and paid tribute to those who lost their lives. He announced compensation of Rs 10 lakh for each family of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for each person undergoing treatment.

The Chief Minister further announced the formation of a one-member Commission of Inquiry, headed by retired High Court Judge Justice Aruna Jagadeesan, to conduct a thorough investigation and submit a report to the government.

Meanwhile, TVK chief and actor Vijay announced financial assistance of Rs 20 lakh for each bereaved family and Rs 2 lakh for the injured.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also announced ex-gratia payments from the Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. He also announced an amount of Rs 50,000 each for the people injured in the tragic incident. "PM Narendra Modi has announced an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh from PMNRF to be given to the next of kin of each deceased in the unfortunate incident at a political rally in Karur, Tamil Nadu. The injured would be given Rs 50,000," the PMO posted on X.

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara expressed condolences over the tragedy, calling it unfortunate and emphasising the need for better security arrangements at large gatherings.

Speaking in Tumakuru, he said, "More security should have been provided for such programs. I do not know how the organizers and security were organized for that program, and I cannot comment on it...It is not right for me to comment without knowing about that incident. He said that more security has been taken for the program to be held in Tumkur for the Tumkur Dasara program," Parameshwara said.

- ANI