Madras HC cancels government jobs for Karur stampede victims

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Monday (July 27) cancelled the government jobs offered by the Tamil Nadu government to the families of the Karur stampede victims. A total of 31 people were offered government jobs, while one person was given Rs 10 lakh solatium at an event in Karur by Chief Minister C Jospeh Vijay earlier this month.

Earlier, the batch of petitions challenging the State government's decision to provide government employment to the legal heirs of those who died in the stampede came up for hearing before a Division Bench comprising Justices CV Karthikeyan and Sakthivel.

Appearing for the State, the Government Pleader submitted that the counter affidavit was not yet ready and sought time to file it. The judges observed that the case had to be heard before the beneficiaries received their first month's salary.

The Government Pleader further informed the court that appointment orders had been issued to 31 persons and that 29 of them had already joined service. The judges, however, observed that all the appointments would be subject to the final decision of the court.