Key Points

Stalin over the Karur stampede of September 27 that claimed 41 lives and injured many during actor-politician Vijay's TVK rally. After visiting the injured and bereaved families along with a BJP parliamentary fact-finding team, Nagenthran said the tragedy exposed "serious administrative failures" and demanded that the investigation be handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

He said the team was "deeply moved by the pain and anger" of those affected and asserted that there was no public confidence in the one-man inquiry commission.

"Only a neutral and independent CBI investigation can bring out the truth," Nagenthran said, before outlining a series of 12 questions for the Chief Minister to answer.

Nagenthran asked why the DMK government had allowed the Karur bus stand roundabout to be used for Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister's events, but refused the same venue to other political parties like TVK.

He questioned why, despite videos showing shoes being thrown at Vijay, a lathi-charge on the crowd, and claims of knife attacks, the government had failed to explain what exactly triggered the deadly surge.

He also criticised the Chief Minister's unusual urgency in Karur when compared to other tragedies such as the Kallakurichi illicit liquor deaths, the Vengaivayal caste atrocity case, the Marina air show stampede, and multiple custodial deaths, where, he alleged, there was no comparable immediate response.

He further alleged that the DMK government acted with "extraordinary speed" after the incident, suggesting an attempt to cover up the truth rather than ensure transparency.

The BJP leader asked why 25 people were booked and four, including journalist Felix, arrested so quickly, which he said looked like an effort to suppress questions from the public and the media.

Nagenthran criticised the police for blaming TVK for wrongly estimating the crowd at 10,000 while failing to assess and control the much larger turnout.

He also questioned why the rally was not stopped or postponed if authorities believed Vijay's delayed arrival might lead to disorder.

Nagenthran said there were glaring security lapses, asking why so few police were deployed and why the Karur district police chief was absent during such a large political gathering.

Despite clear failures, he said, no action had been taken against local officials, fuelling suspicion that the government feared deeper truths could emerge.

He also criticised the inquiry commission head for making public remarks before finishing the investigation and asked who authorised the Revenue Secretary to issue statements that could compromise the probe's neutrality.

Finally, Nagenthran questioned why the DMK government, which had transferred the Ajith Kumar custodial death case to the CBI, was unwilling to do the same for the Karur stampede.

Calling the incident a "man-made disaster caused by the DMK's administrative lapses", Nagenthran demanded an impartial CBI probe and said, "The people of Tamil Nadu deserve honest answers and accountability for this tragedy."

- IANS