Actor-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) announced on Sunday that it will approach the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court to demand an independent probe into the Karur rally stampede that claimed 38 lives, including 10 children. The party alleged the tragedy was not accidental, citing stone-pelting in the crowd and a police lathi-charge at the venue, and called it a possible “conspiracy.”
00:00There's information coming in and we've accessed details of the TVK's appeal in the Madras High Court.
00:06And it looks like the Tamaragavetri Karagam here is trying to claim that this is a conspiracy that's led to the stampede.
00:13Here's what the TMK appeal says in the Madras High Court.
00:16That police resorted to Lati charge, that's what led to chaos.
00:19They claim there was also stone pelting.
00:22They claim stone pelting took place.
00:24And this is the information that we're picking up right now on the TVK's plea in the Madras High Court.
00:30The hearing likely to happen tomorrow in the Madras High Court.
00:34But Vijay's party has taken their line.
00:37Their stand is that this is a conspiracy.
00:39Are they suggesting that a stampede was intentionally triggered?
00:45Well, the appeal says that police resorted to Lati charge, that stone pelting took place in the gathering.
00:52And so a conspiracy has taken place.
00:55This is the petition that the TVK has put forth while seeking that there be an investigation, a fair investigation and a non-biased investigation.
01:05So they're seeking that at a time when the government has already announced that there will be a one woman commission in this particular case.
01:13A judge commission that looks into this particular stampede and gives details of what were the lapses, what led to this kind of an incident actually happening.
01:23The TVK has claimed conspiracy here.
01:26They're claiming the police resorted to Lati charge.
01:29That led to the situation spiraling out of control.
01:31They claim stone pelting took place.
01:33This is the first time, by the way, we're hearing of stone pelting.
01:36So far, there's been no report of it.
01:38None of the eyewitnesses spoke of stone pelting, but TVK maintains that all of this took place and that's what led to a stampede breaking out.
01:47So unsurprisingly, while I was referring to all the finger pointing, this is what the TVK stand is, that this is a conspiracy.
01:55What they seem to be suggesting is that this is a manufactured stampede.
01:59What effectively emerges from this is that you're going to be seeing both sides pointing fingers at each other.
02:07Nobody, nobody willing to take responsibility or learn lessons from what had happened.
02:13While Vijay has been putting out emotional statements one after another, at this point, the TVK stand seems to be that there is in fact a conspiracy here.
02:24What we're hearing is that the TVK will file that petition before the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court tomorrow morning for an independent agency investigation with these points.
02:34Highlighting that they believe it was a conspiracy and so they feel that this should be an independent investigation.
02:40Mr. Aki Upadhyay, what do you make of this line that the TVK is taking?
02:44Look, if you're going to claim conspiracy, you better have evidence because otherwise you're going to be inviting the wrath of the people, especially in this kind of a tragedy.
02:54Mr. Aki Upadhyay, I think instead of getting it to blame game, Vijay should get it to soul searching.
03:01He should, you know, reminisce over why it happened, how it happened and what steps he should take to never, never, you know, repeat this.
03:10And I think he himself should set some, you know, benchmarks as to how it can be prevented.
03:15And I would suggest that he should have his rallies, you know, before dusk.
03:20He should not have any rallies in the night because the kind of crowds that are coming in, it's unimaginable and I think it's not going to be easy to manage them.
03:28Look at what has happened and from Anaga's report, we can see that there were, you know, blackouts in between.
03:34I mean, there is blackouts when there are so many people.
03:38These kind of disasters are bound to happen.
03:40And I think he himself should draw some, you know, red lines and I know he should ensure that there are no children coming to these rallies and he should have his rallies during the daytime.
03:49And, you know, he should have rallies where there is sufficient space and he should give, you know, one week time to, you know, examine how the rally venue is.
03:59And, you know, all these precautions he should take.
04:01I mean, the responsibility is on him.
04:02He is, no, there is no point in blaming the administration.
04:06There is no point in trying to say there was a conspiracy and I think he will not be going forward politically if he indulges in this kind of politics.
04:14I think he should.
04:14Earned a whole lot of goodwill for Vijay.
04:17And he should go beyond that.
04:18What would have earned a whole lot of goodwill for Vijay is if he had stepped up to show he's a mature politician.
04:25Tragedies happen.
04:26Yes, he should have taken responsibility and said, my heart goes out for what has happened.
04:31I take responsibility.
04:33I will take corrective measures.
04:35That would have been the sign of a mature politician.
04:37That would have earned the goodwill of people because they would have said that if you're willing to admit your mistakes, you're willing to be answerable to the people.
04:45Instead, what did we see?
04:47Vijay leaving from that very location as soon as the stampede broke out.
04:52Vijay not staying put in Karur.
04:54Not staying put in Karur saying I will be here till I get a chance to meet with the victims.
04:57Instead, rushing back to Trichy, taking his chartered plane back to Chennai, seated in his residence in Chennai right now.
05:04That reeks of a superstar attitude which is not what a politician should be having.
05:10And as we get to those reactions, I want you to listen in to what the people who were there at that stampede had to say.
05:18The TVK says it's all a large conspiracy.
05:20What are their eyewitnesses, those who suffered losses as a result of the stampede, actually a witness?
05:26Listen in to this.
05:27Listen in to this.
05:5745.
05:5845.
05:5945.
06:00How about you?
06:01120.
06:02Do you study?
06:03Yes.
06:04Okay.
06:05Please take care.
06:06My deepest condolences.
06:07A little later.
06:08If you come to the bathroom, you'll be able to see it later.
06:12Okay.
06:13I've got a lot of power supply.
06:14Okay.
06:15How much money is done?
06:16I'm running around 7 and I'm running around 7-30.
06:20Okay.
06:21I'm running around 7 and 11.
06:22I'm running around 7 and 11.
06:24I'm running around 7 and 11.
06:25Okay.
06:26I'm running around 7 and 11.
06:27At that time, I have to do many things.
06:30If you have a lot of power, you will be able to get the power.
06:34The problem is, with the people, the people are struggling with their own children.
06:41I have to do that.
06:46I have to do that.
06:48I have to do that.
06:51How do you do that?
06:53What advice are you going to do with your father and your father?
07:00Yes.
07:01Yes.
07:02Yes.
07:03Yes.
07:04Yes.
07:05Yes.
07:06Yes.
07:07Yes.
07:08Yes.
07:09Yes.
07:10Yes.
07:11Yes.
07:12Yes.
07:13Yes.
07:14Yes.
07:15Yes.
07:16Yes.
07:17Yes.
07:18Okay.
07:26There was no water, no police to help anyone.
07:29TVK Carder themselves were injured so they couldn't help either.
07:33These people were cramped into narrow lanes with nowhere to go.
07:37And so they were literally just waiting to figure out what's going to happen.
07:41And then there's a power-cut.
07:42So imagine the panic that broke out right then.
07:45All of this is what led to the stampede actually happening.
07:49All of this, there are questions of whether it was a result of negligence, of sheer negligence,
07:55that 50,000 people are cramped together.
07:58You have a power cut at that point.
07:59There's no water distribution happening.
08:01So much so that people, as you see there, were actually going ahead and pushing through homes, huts,
08:06trying to just get some air.
08:09There were attempts to resuscitate people on the street there
08:13because ambulances were finding it impossible to make their way through
08:16and reach these victims, reach these casualties.
08:19There were appeals being made by Vijay, but it didn't help
08:22because there were such crowds that there was no way anyone could actually make their way through.
08:27It's heartbreaking to even think what these people went through,
08:30especially the little children who've suffered as a result of being a part of this event,
08:35all because they wanted to catch a glimpse of this superstar.
08:37Many would argue, of course, that this kind of a rally is no place for a child.
08:42But at the end of the day, look, 10 children have lost their lives as a result.
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