- 1 day ago
This edition of Newstrack focusses on actor-turned-politician and TVK chief Vijay, who was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation for over seven hours in New Delhi in connection with Karur stampede that resulted in 41 deaths three months ago.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Good evening, you're watching NewsTrack with me, Maria Shaquille.
00:03Three months after a tragedy that shook Tamil Nadu,
00:07the spotlight shifts from the rally ground in Karoor
00:10to the interrogation room in the national capital.
00:13From box office superstardom to the CBI's witness chair,
00:18the road to politics for the actor-turned-Neta Vijay appears far from easy.
00:24Vijay was questioned for over seven hours by the central agency
00:27in connection with the Karoor stampede that claimed 41 lives.
00:31Tonight on NewsTrack, we bring you exclusive details
00:35of what the CBI asked Vijay and what he told the interrogators.
00:40And what lies ahead for Vijay?
00:43Will the shadow of Karoor haunt his political debut?
00:47From box office blow to CBI heat,
00:51Can Vijay's script arise like a Jainan Nayaghan battling all odds?
00:58Before I get to ask these questions to my guests,
01:02here's all that happened today.
01:11Three months after the tragic Karoor stampede
01:13and amid growing political noise and chorus for justice,
01:17actor-turned-politician, Thalapati Vijay was summoned to the national capital for questioning.
01:24Early Monday morning, the TVK chief flew from Chennai to Delhi on a chartered flight.
01:31By noon, Vijay, dressed in a black shirt,
01:33arrived at the CBI headquarters in his black Range Rover,
01:37accompanied by his close aide, Adhav Arjuna.
01:39The car has gone right in.
01:42You see the Range Rover entering the CBI headquarters there.
01:46Amid chance by, in fact, TVK supporters of Thalapati,
01:50Vijay's car has just entered inside the CBI headquarters.
01:54They've allowed his car inside,
01:55keeping in mind the high security situation currently that's playing out.
02:01Unlike most cases,
02:02Vijay's cavalcade drove straight into the CBI headquarters.
02:05This is very unusual because in most of the cases,
02:09what we have seen is that whenever a person arrives,
02:12they have to go from that particular gate.
02:14But as far as today's, you know, questioning is concerned,
02:19Vijay was allowed from this particular entry gate.
02:22Now again, we can see his car.
02:24It means that Vijay has got down from his car.
02:27He has gone inside the CBI headquarters.
02:29The CBI began questioning Vijay as a witness around 11.15 a.m.
02:33And the grilling continued for over seven hours.
02:38The questioning is almost over.
02:40His last statement has been recorded.
02:42The formalities, the signing formalities are over.
02:46And, you know, from any moment from now,
02:49we will be able to see Vijay coming out from this particular gate.
02:54The CBI had taken over the probe into stampede
02:56after a Supreme Court order.
02:59The probe focused on lapses at the rally
03:01that may have contributed to the disaster.
03:04Including the venue capacity,
03:06inadequate crowd control measures,
03:09poor traffic management,
03:12and an insufficient medical response system.
03:15India Today has also exclusively accessed
03:18CBI's line of questioning to Vijay.
03:19The questions posed to Vijay include,
03:24why did he continue his speech despite knowing people had fainted?
03:27Why didn't Vijay do anything for those who had fainted
03:30other than giving water bottles?
03:32Why didn't Vijay reach the venue on time?
03:35And was the delay intended to gather more crowds to showcase strength?
03:41India Today has learned that Vijay was not confronted with any other accused.
03:45During questioning, Vijay maintained that neither he nor TVK was responsible for the stampede.
03:53The same stand, sources say, has been taken by party functionaries questioned earlier.
03:59Vijay also told investigators that he left the venue fearing his presence could worsen the chaos.
04:03The CBI will now analyse and match these statements with police testimonies.
04:10Some of whom have claimed that the actor's delayed arrival aggravated the situation.
04:15For now, Vijay has not been summoned again.
04:18But sources say that he may be called back for questioning after Pongal.
04:22The DMK, the ruling party in Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, has accused the CBI of pressuring the star.
04:28BJP is called washing machine.
04:30They will misuse the powers of CBI, ED, IT, every department.
04:36Now they have started with the CBFC also.
04:38So they are known for it.
04:40And they will put pressure and I don't know how Vijay is going to face it.
04:44So what lies ahead for Thalapati Vijay?
04:47Will the shadow of Karoor haunt his political debut?
04:49Or will he script a rise like Jananayagan battling all odds?
04:54With Shivani Sharma, Pramod Madhav, Anagha and Apoorva, Bureau Report, India Today.
05:01Hi, Satyan of the AIADMK joins me on this broadcast.
05:06We have Ramaswamy Mayappan who is an advocate of Midras High Court
05:10and Sumansi Raman, political analyst.
05:13Sumansi Raman, how significant is the timing of this probe
05:16given Vijay's political entry.
05:20There are lots of talks of him perhaps occupying that opposition space.
05:25Is he becoming a challenger more to the DMK
05:29or is he a threat to AIADMK?
05:33He is a threat to everyone.
05:35But I don't see much in the timing of this probe.
05:39Look, it was a court order.
05:42Vijay himself wanted a CBI probe.
05:45So therefore, you know, to say that the CBI has called him now
05:49as some kind of pressure tactic, it doesn't add up.
05:52He has asked for a CBI probe.
05:54Court has given, ordered a CBI probe.
05:56And now that the CBI probe has come, as the person who organized the meeting,
06:03I mean, the meeting was organized for people to see him speak.
06:06And as somebody who has been on top of the van making his speech
06:10as the stampede happened, naturally he would be a key witness
06:13in this particular case.
06:15So just because he has been called for questioning
06:18and to give his inputs, that does not necessarily mean
06:23that, you know, the center is going after him.
06:26I don't think so.
06:27I expected him to be, you know, sent back after a day's questioning.
06:33Maybe one more day he may be called after Pongal.
06:35But that's about it.
06:36I don't see any political significance.
06:39In fact, I see much larger political pressure significance
06:43in the way his movie has been delayed.
06:46Okay.
06:46Where, about which he has not opened his mouth.
06:49And the CBFC running from quote to quote,
06:51literally sprinting and asking for urgent hearing here,
06:54urgent hearing there, Supreme Court caveat today.
06:57So that seems to be more suspicious to me
07:00than merely calling him for the CBI inquiry.
07:04Yes, because that's a point well taken, Subhansi Raman.
07:07Because Kuvai Satyan, it was actor Vijay
07:10who had demanded a CBI probe.
07:12So for him to appear and, you know, participate in the investigation
07:15should not be seen from any kind of political understanding
07:20or political maneuvering point of view.
07:24True.
07:25His movie release and the case and the CB inquiry,
07:29those are isolated incidences.
07:31Since because he has announced his entry into public life as a politician,
07:36you certainly will find people who will try to connect the dots
07:38and paint a picture.
07:39But look at DMK.
07:42DMK says it is the power and misuse of the central government,
07:46particularly BJP, to arm twist Vijay.
07:49That's a narrative happening in Tamil Nadu.
07:51But indeed, it is DMK,
07:54who is known to file fake cases and false cases on their opponents,
07:58tried to implicate Vijay in this case on criminal grounds.
08:03Their intent was to silence Vijay through that case.
08:06And that's the reason TVK went to the court and sought a CBI inquiry.
08:12And the design and malafied intent of DMK was thwarted with this approach.
08:18Nothing more to it.
08:19Now, DMK trying to paint a picture that CBI is trying to excise power on Vijay
08:24is nothing but crocodile tears.
08:26This is what DMK intended to do with Karu Rishu,
08:30trying to file a criminal charge against Vijay.
08:32Now, having said that, now the battle of Tamil Nadu is heading towards a clear title and mandate.
08:40The writing on the wall is clear.
08:41It's 2026, AI, ADMK, all the way.
08:43Okay.
08:44Vijay, definitely he's a force to reckon with.
08:46You will get to know the share of his vote once the elections are open.
08:50So, is he just a force to reckon with?
08:52Or is he not a threat as Sumansi Raman is saying?
08:56He is not a threat.
08:58He is not a threat.
08:59It is a political startup.
09:01You will get to know his percentage only after the elections is over.
09:04And the analysis will say in which are all the constituencies where he has played the role of a spoiler.
09:10See, political startup, first his movie allegedly is stalled, although CBFC has its own reasoning.
09:22And now we are seeing this questioning.
09:23Of course, this questioning could be seen from a different point of view.
09:26And perhaps Ramaswamy Mayappan will be able to explain this better.
09:30From a legal standpoint, what does a seven-hour questioning really indicate?
09:34He has not been summoned tomorrow, but can be called again.
09:37Again, the question here is, there is alleged security lapses on the part of the organizers.
09:45And hence, will it fall in the domain of criminal liability?
09:50Who is to be blamed for the tragedy?
09:55Very good evening.
09:56See, first, in terms of the criminal liability, absolutely.
10:0141 lives have lost.
10:02Someone's got to be blamed for it.
10:04And the reason why I say someone has to be blamed
10:06is because it was not because there was proper organization, it was an accident.
10:11It was because of negligence.
10:12It was negligence after the manner in which Vijay's party either ran the conference or the event
10:18and or in which the police and the local administration failed to control the crowd.
10:22So, therefore, that 41 lives, their families need closure.
10:26And we need a proper response as to why this happened
10:28and how this can be prevented in the future.
10:31And to the question that everyone keeps asking,
10:34is CBI inquiry, is a mechanism that is used by the central government to arm twist Vijay?
10:40Absolutely no.
10:41If Vijay thought so, Vijay would not have gone to the Supreme Court
10:44and asked for a neutral party to inquire.
10:46The reason why he asked, he did not see transparency.
10:49He did not see integrity in the agency inquiring into the entire affair from Tamil Nadu.
10:54With the DMK at the helm of affairs, he thought that that was never going to happen.
10:58He was going to be single-handedly blamed
11:00and they were going to try to have him out of the ropes for the elections coming in 2026.
11:05So, squarely, even in the Supreme Court, he has agreed to the CBI inquiry
11:08and all that he has done today is properly participated in the inquiry.
11:12Unlike Sindhul Balaji who tried to evade inquiry from the inquiry agency over time and over again
11:18and similarly with Ponmodi and the other political leaders who belong to the DMK,
11:22the DMK can paint any picture that they want today.
11:25But the people of Tamil Nadu know what the reality is.
11:28Every other person involved in Tamil Nadu,
11:30either a police inquiry in Tamil Nadu or a CBI inquiry at Delhi,
11:34participates and cooperates with the inquiry process
11:36except for those who have membership of the DMK.
11:39Even today, that's been the case with members of the BJP.
11:42The DMK keeps filing false cases against BJP politicians in the state
11:47but they cooperate with the inquiry process.
11:49They agree to whatever is required by the law enforcement agency.
11:52That's one part of the thing.
11:53And the second is the political agenda.
11:56If Vijay were to place himself as one of the frontrunners
11:59and be a chief ministerial candidate,
12:01then he should potentially be stating what he requires
12:04against the oppositions very strongly.
12:07All that he has limited himself is to the Karoor event against the DMK.
12:10Every single issue that the DMK has brought about,
12:13either it's unemployment in the states, teachers' welfare,
12:16the loss-making corporations such as the transport corporation
12:19or the electricity corporation,
12:21the well-being of the Safai Karamcharis,
12:23the well-being of teachers.
12:24There are so many questions that actor Vijay has been raising
12:28in the last, you know, ever since he started his political party.
12:33But the spotlight is on Karoor and also that his movie has been stalled.
12:40Then, Suman C. Raman is the DMK trying to really, you know,
12:46put him in a box,
12:48something that he really doesn't represent in many ways.
12:52He's talking about larger issues.
12:54He's talking about the failure of DMK on multiple fronts.
12:57But the DMK is trying to make it about just couple of issues.
13:02The DMK, I think, overplayed their hand
13:05the way they were over-enthusiastic about what happened at Karoor.
13:10Karoor, you know, the chief minister rushing there within a few hours.
13:14He didn't rush to Kaldakurji when, you know,
13:16there was a huge tragedy which claimed more than 60 lives.
13:21You know, whereas in Karoor,
13:22he was there within six to seven hours of the incident.
13:26And the alacrity with which the ministers rushed there,
13:29one of the ministers was seen crying and, you know,
13:33you know, the postmortems being done in the middle of the night.
13:36I mean, the same night, within three to four hours of the tragedy,
13:41the postmortems had started.
13:43The bodies were all buried or cremated before the next morning,
13:46except one or two.
13:47So I think that, you know,
13:49all of this meant that there was some kind of unholy interest
13:53that the DMK government took in this tragedy.
13:57And the way they attempted their social media handles
14:01and others attempted to put the blame on Vijay,
14:04I think they overplayed their hand.
14:06The public generally did do believe that it was an accident
14:10or, you know, they may actually blame the state government
14:14for not, for the police for not doing their job properly.
14:17So I think that that has led, conversely,
14:21it has only led to sympathy for Vijay,
14:23even though his response to the tragedy was very, very pathetic.
14:26I mean, the fact that he didn't even go to Karoor
14:28and visit the victims instead of calling them to a hotel in Mahabalipuram
14:33a good month after the incident.
14:36So I think that all his response was more or less paralyzed.
14:41Even in this matter of this movie being held up, Maria,
14:44he has not said a word.
14:48His party seniors also have not said a word.
14:52It's only a few social media handles who are going,
14:56you know, saying that this may be part of a vendetta and so on.
15:00Officially, from the TVK,
15:02there has been nothing said about the movie
15:04being held up with the censors
15:06after having been promised a UA certificate
15:09and then, you know, one member objecting
15:12and the court battle going on an appeal
15:15against a verdict given by a judge of the Madras High Court
15:19saying that the movie should be granted a certificate
15:22and then filing a caveat in the Supreme Court.
15:26He has been silent.
15:27He has not blamed the BJP.
15:29He has not blamed the center.
15:31He has not said a word.
15:33So what is his politics about?
15:36We don't know at this point.
15:38Politics all about here, Kovai Satyan.
15:41One thing is clear that he is not really a victim here
15:43and this cannot be seen as a witch hunt either
15:46because, you know, agencies often are seen
15:51as questioning leaders in opposition rule states,
15:55something that Mamata Panerjee is saying.
15:57But here, despite him opposing the DMK,
16:02he isn't really a victim
16:03because in this particular case,
16:06as I said and as was pointing out rightly
16:09by Suman Siraman,
16:11that the CBI probe's first demand
16:13came from actor Vijay himself.
16:17So there is no legal trouble for him
16:19and there is no targeting of actor Vijay either.
16:24There is a difference in pre-Karoor and post-Karoor
16:28for TBK party and Mr. Vijay.
16:30The way he acted after the incident
16:33has not gone well with the people of Tamil Nadu
16:35and the common man.
16:35Let's accept that.
16:37Vijay has equal responsibility
16:38in the issue where 41 precious lives are lost.
16:42But the reality and the truth is
16:44the DMK tried to use this
16:46for their political mileage and advantage
16:49by filing a criminal case against Vijay.
16:51They thought they will be able to silence Vijay
16:53once the case is being framed
16:54and it is proceeding.
16:56The next day, the very next day,
16:57it is our leader
16:58who pointed the finger towards the laps
17:01of the government missionary.
17:03That's where it took a different turn.
17:05That's where people started questioning
17:06what is the role of police force?
17:08What is the role of the ruling government?
17:10Till then, everyone were blaming Vijay
17:12for his late arrival.
17:14So after that,
17:15since they went and sought a CBI inquiry,
17:18now what is more important is
17:19there is a theory
17:20that this Karoor stampede is staged.
17:25You cannot negate it.
17:26Even a couple of TBK leaders said
17:27it is enacted and staged.
17:30Staged by whom?
17:32That's what we are waiting for
17:34the inquiry to get over
17:35and we should get to know
17:36from the CBI
17:37after the inquiry is done.
17:39Was it really staged?
17:39So who does it really benefit?
17:40No, no, no.
17:41When you say it's staged,
17:4241 lives have been lost
17:44and you are saying that it's staged.
17:47That is a bastion of Mr. Sindhal Balaji
17:50who is a DMK minister now
17:53and who is now about to get convicted
17:55for a cash for jobs scam.
17:56So conspiracy theorists have that logic.
17:58I mean, Sumansi Raman,
17:59it fails me
18:00that politicians would want deaths
18:02to get political mileage.
18:05No, I think again...
18:07It's not about political mileage.
18:09The theory you cannot negate.
18:10There is a theory
18:11and there is an allocation
18:12and the truth has to come out.
18:14So everybody are keeping
18:15their fingers crossed
18:16on the outcome of the CBI in Kuwait.
18:18If it were to be the Tamil Nadu police,
18:21this conspiracy angle
18:22wouldn't have been investigated.
18:23I'm not too sure
18:24if the outcome of this probe,
18:27the final probe report
18:29will come out
18:30before the results.
18:31Before the election.
18:32Before the elections.
18:33So that's not happening.
18:35So whatever the truth
18:36we'll not know about it.
18:38Till the elections.
18:39But there is of course
18:42the fact
18:43that we have seen
18:44in several cases
18:45that quote unquote
18:46sources
18:47could give information
18:49as to which way
18:50the probe is going.
18:51That could create
18:52political
18:53you know
18:54an upheaval.
18:56You know
18:56the CBI
18:56is not
18:57definitely
18:58known to be
19:00an agency
19:00where leaks
19:01have never occurred
19:02before.
19:03So
19:03there could be
19:05things which could come out.
19:06I mean
19:06it really depends
19:07on how serious
19:09the BJP is
19:11in cornering
19:12the DMK
19:13because
19:14quite honestly
19:15Maria
19:16at this point
19:17it doesn't seem to be
19:18that the BJP
19:19is very keen
19:19on cornering
19:20the DMK at all.
19:21There are so many cases
19:22which are all
19:23in cold storage.
19:24Any case
19:25against senior DMK
19:27leaders
19:27which have been filed
19:28almost all of it
19:30is in cold storage
19:31hardly any moment
19:32and I'll give you
19:33the classical example
19:35you must have heard
19:36of a case
19:36called the
19:372G scam
19:37alleged scam
19:39what happened to it?
19:415 and a half
19:416 years in appeal
19:43it's not moved
19:43one inch
19:44who's the
19:45prosecuting agency?
19:47Okay let me ask
19:47those questions
19:48to Namaswamy
19:49Mayappan
19:49just enough time
19:50for your final comments
19:51please go ahead
19:51Mr. Mayappan
19:52see very simple
19:54people keep talking about
19:56the film rating
19:57and the certification
19:58coming through
19:58some of the
19:59Vijay and the
20:00production house
20:01know for long
20:02that they're going to
20:02release the movie
20:03on the 9th of January
20:04but they file for
20:05their applications
20:06by way of
20:06Thakkal only
20:07on December 18th
20:08and for them to respond
20:09that they have a priority
20:10over everyone else
20:11just because they are
20:12in politics
20:13or because the star
20:14is unacceptable
20:14and that the courts
20:16will have to hear
20:16to their matters
20:17with urgency
20:18whereas matters
20:19of education
20:20matters of
20:21I don't know
20:22life
20:23are to be dealt with
20:25slowly compared
20:26to their movies
20:26is unreasonable
20:27someone who wants
20:28to be in politics
20:29will have to be
20:29more reasonable
20:30more responsible
20:31so one for his movie
20:32one law for himself
20:33and one law for the people
20:35is unacceptable
20:35so he will have to
20:36clear and put a
20:38proper stand
20:40as far as that is concerned
20:41and if his questions
20:42are with the DMK
20:43in terms of their
20:43transparency
20:44integrity
20:44and how they run
20:45the government
20:46and how they help
20:47the people
20:47that has to be consistent
20:48he can't be playing
20:49hot and cold
20:50after having stepped
20:52into politics
20:53alright
20:53Mr. Mayappan
20:56Kuvai Sautyan
20:56and Suman Siraman
20:57really appreciate your time
20:58there is a piece
20:59of breaking news
20:59that is coming in now
21:00which will now be seen
21:02as a setback
21:03for Mahayuti
21:04ahead of the BMC polls
21:05in fact the state
21:06election commission
21:07has said that
21:08advance payments
21:09of Latki Behen
21:10Yojana
21:10cannot be made
21:11during the
21:12model code of conduct
21:13but the state
21:14election commission
21:15had received
21:15various complaints
21:16based on news reports
21:17Mahayuti government
21:19had promised
21:193,000 rupees
21:21to Latki Behen
21:22beneficiaries
21:23on January 14th
21:25so this
21:25installment had
21:28to be released
21:29to be released
21:29on January 14th
21:31now that has
21:32been stalled
21:33in what will be seen
21:34as a setback
21:35for Mahayuti
21:35the state election
21:36commission has said
21:37that advance payments
21:38for Latki Behen
21:39which is
21:40a pet project
21:42of
21:42the chief minister
21:45Divendra Fadnavis
21:45has now been stalled
21:47because of
21:48model code of conduct
21:49the installment
21:51had to be released
21:52on 14th
21:53Mustafa is joining me
21:54Mustafa
21:55was it a complaint
21:56that was made
21:57by opposition
21:57the complaint
21:59which was made
22:00by congress
22:00and any other
22:01opposition parties
22:02Latki Behen
22:03had built
22:03an important role
22:04in the assembly
22:04elections of
22:05Maharashtra
22:05and turn tables
22:06for the Mahayuti
22:07government
22:08and hence
22:08maybe Mahayuti
22:09government
22:10decided that
22:10they will be
22:11disbursing the
22:12Mahayuti payment
22:12of 1,500 rupees
22:14for December
22:14and January
22:15so two months
22:16payment was going
22:16to be together
22:17as per the
22:18election code of conduct
22:19existing schemes
22:20will continue
22:21and the benefits
22:22will continue
22:22but at the same
22:23time
22:23the advance
22:24payments
22:25of the
22:25existing schemes
22:26cannot be made
22:27and hence
22:27the state
22:28election commission
22:28has asked
22:29Mahayuti
22:29to not take
22:30any advance
22:31payment
22:31which was
22:32planned
22:32to be made
22:33for two months
22:34only one month
22:35of payment
22:36and beneficiary
22:36can be
22:37is allowed
22:37but the total
22:38together amount
22:39on a month
22:40which was
22:413,000 rupees
22:41per month
22:42is something
22:42which the state
22:43election commission
22:43has asked
22:44them to not
22:44release
22:45so it's a
22:45setback
22:45for Mahayuti
22:46government
22:46which was
22:47planning a boost
22:47for the
22:48Larki Behen
22:49beneficiaries
22:50just ahead
22:50of elections
22:51on 15th
22:51of January
22:52back to you
22:52all right
22:53Mustafa
22:53really appreciate
22:54your time
22:54thank you so
22:55much for
22:55joining us
22:56that's all
22:57from me
22:57on this
22:58edition of
22:58news track
22:59I'll be
22:59seeing you
22:59tomorrow
23:00thanks so
23:00much for
23:01watching
Be the first to comment