New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Tuesday dismissed a petition filed by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam seeking to restrain Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay from distributing compensation and meeting the families of the Karur stampede victims. Coming down heavily on the petitioners the apex court firmly remarked that judicial forums cannot be used as political platforms and questioned how a court could restrict the official duties and movements of a Chief Minister.
The petition which was filed by DMK Secretary R S Bharathi sought urgent judicial intervention to stop CM Vijay and other Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam leaders including state minister Aadhav Arjuna from making public statements regarding the tragic incident. The DMK argued that the scheduled visit of the Chief Minister to Karur on July 10 to distribute an ex gratia of ten lakh rupees and offer government jobs to the kin of the victims amounted to influencing key witnesses in the ongoing investigation.
The devastating stampede which occurred during a political rally in Karur on September 27 2025 claimed forty one lives and left several others severely injured. The Madras High Court had previously handed over the investigation of this grave incident to a Special Investigation Team. The DMK claimed that since the accused individuals are now holding high constitutional offices their direct interaction with the victims families could severely compromise the ongoing probe.
However during the hearing the Supreme Court bench strongly rebuked the arguments presented by the opposition party. The judges pointedly asked the DMK counsel how a Chief Minister visiting the families of stampede victims to offer financial assistance and state support could be automatically construed as tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses. The top court firmly stated that it is absolutely not the jurisdiction of the judiciary to regulate the public outreach of an executive head or to dictate what statements a Chief Minister is allowed to make in public.
Facing severe observations from the bench the senior counsel representing the DMK ultimately agreed to withdraw the application. Consequently the Supreme Court formally dismissed the plea as withdrawn. This significant legal ruling clears the path for CM Vijay to proceed with his scheduled outreach program in Karur dealing a major political and legal setback to the DMK.