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The stampede in Veluswamypuram, Karur district, claimed 41 lives in all.
In the criminal case filed after 41 persons were killed in a stampede at actor-turned-politician Vijay's rally in Karur, the Madras High Court on Friday denied anticipatory bail to Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) General Secretary N Anand and Joint General Secretary CTR Nirmal Kumar.
Also Read: Vijay rally stampede: TVK officials accuse the State of manipulation and ask the Madras High Court for anticipatory bail
On September 27, as Vijay, the party's founder, was campaigning at a TVK rally at Veluswamypuram, Karur district, a rush broke out.
Numerous people were hurt in the rush, and at least 41 people—including women and children—died.
An FIR was filed after the event against a number of TVK employees, with the exception of Vijay, on allegations of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, failing to maintain safety, and misrepresenting the anticipated number of attendees and venue setup.
Anand and Nirmal Kumar were represented by advocate V Raghavachari, who contended that the case against them was fabricated.
View the accusations made against me, please. Vijay, my leader, arrived four hours late for the demonstration. Their whole argument is, "Why did you arrive at seven o'clock instead of three?" I want to know if that is a crime. The State has distorted the entire case. It is impossible to turn an accident into culpable homicide.
He went on to say that TVK had been given the rally site by the local government, not the location the political party had requested when it first requested permission to organize the event.
"The State needs to explain why this location was chosen. It's what they do. They have a department dedicated to intelligence. Raghavachari argued, "The same location was deemed inappropriate for another party (AIADMK)."
He continued by saying that one of the responsibilities of the State was crowd control.
Nonetheless, the State claimed that TVK's officials' careless actions were to blame for the disaster.
In his capacity as General Secretary, Anand asked his cadre and the media to be ready by 12 p.m. since the leader was on his way. Has he ever said in the press that people ought to act responsibly? There was not even a single announcement to keep the mob in line. What action did they take? Did the General Secretary or Join Secretary make any public announcements? State counsel argued.
He continued by opposing the granting of anticipatory bail, citing the fact that the State had only recently started its investigation.
"An additional political tactic is their anticipatory bail. "These individuals were utterly careless and heedless," he insisted.
Following the parties' hearing, the court refused to grant anticipatory bail.
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