CBI questions TVK chief Vijay for hours in Karur stampede probe
This was the third round of interrogation of the actor; he had been examined twice in January.
This was the third round of interrogation of the actor; he had been examined twice in January.
This was the third round of interrogation of the actor; he had been examined twice in January.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday questioned actor and TVK chief Vijay for more than seven hours at its headquarters here in connection with last year’s stampede during his rally in Karur, Tamil Nadu, which left 41 people dead, PTI reported.
Vijay left the agency’s office at around 6 pm after the questioning and related formalities were completed, officials said. This was the third round of interrogation of the actor; he had been examined twice in January.
The actor had initially been asked to appear before the agency on March 9 but later sought a 15-day postponement, officials added. He had also requested that the questioning take place in Chennai or any other office in Tamil Nadu, citing political engagements ahead of the forthcoming Assembly elections, they said.
However, the agency rejected both requests and directed him to appear at its headquarters on Sunday. Meanwhile, the CBI has also summoned Senthil Balaji, the DMK MLA from Karur, asking him to appear before the agency for questioning on March 17, officials said.
The probe agency took charge of the investigation from a Special Investigation Team (SIT) following directions from the Supreme Court of India. The case relates to the stampede on September 27, 2025, during Vijay’s rally in Karur, which killed 41 people and injured more than 60 others.
In October last year, the apex court directed the CBI Director to appoint a senior officer to lead the investigation and also set up a supervisory committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Ajay Rastogi to oversee the probe.
A bench comprising Justices J K Maheshwari and N V Anjaria had said the stampede has left an imprint in the minds of citizens throughout the country. It has wide ramifications with respect to the lives of citizens, and enforcing the fundamental rights of the families who lost their kin is of utmost importance, the court had said.
"The faith and trust of the general public in the process of investigation must be restored in the criminal justice system, and one way to instil such trust is by ensuring that the investigation in the present case is completely impartial, independent and unbiased," the bench had said.
(With PTI Inputs)