'Ran away from crisis': Vijay faces flak for his sudden exit from Karur following stampede

Actor-turned-politician Vijay, whose rip-roaring campaign rallies have swayed the masses across Tamil Nadu for the past one week, was suddenly found grappling with intense criticism following the stampede that claimed 38 lives. Soon after the chaos ballooned into a major disaster, Vijay left for Chennai. He didn't bother to answer media queries at the airport. In front of his residence, men stood guard as he arrived in his car, and again Vijay shunned the media. 

His first reaction to the incident also came at least two hours after reports emerged about the mounting death toll. He expressed his grief and conveyed his condolences to the families of the victims on a social media post. In the meantime, the DMK led by Chief Minister M K Stalin sent its ministers to Karur and the ministers were seen consoling the families and coordinating medical aid. Throughout the campaign rally, which Vijay kicked off on September 13, he had taken on the DMK, calling the party his major political adversary. 

Social media comments soon gathered traction on Vijay 'vanishing' from the accident site, while others headed to the hospitals to help the people. When Ranjana Natchiyar, TVK (Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam) spokesperson, was asked about why Vijay was not at the scene, she told a national channel that he would talk to the people at the right time. She was also caught unawares when the channel anchor told her that Vijay had left the accident site and reached Trichy airport to catch a flight to Chennai. 

The tragedy also exposed organisational chinks in his party TVK, which he had launched in 2024. Since the launch, his party has been slammed as a collection of fans without any organisational base. The taunts proved dearly for Vijay as his partymen couldn't do much when the crowd, who waited for hours, fainted right in front of Vijay. He mobilised water bottles and threw them at the crowd, who had started collapsing. With no prior experience in organising massive gatherings and acting in unison with the police, Vijay and his party cut a sorry figure on the day when the tragedy struck. 

A letter submitted by the party to the Karur SP seeking permission for the rally also emerged, triggering further criticism. According to the letter, the place could carry 60,000 people, and the party expected 10,000 people to attend. Photos and videos showed the two sides of a four-lane road being swarmed with a huge crowd and people shoving at the caravan in which Vijay arrived. 

According to reports, Vijay is likely to be summoned for questioning on Sunday. Political observers have commented that the campaign rally, which Vijay thought would work in his favour, has taken a shocking turn for him, and it would be a tough task to justify his response to a major crisis as a political leader in the coming days.