CHENNAI: Actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) president Vijay will appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in New Delhi on Monday, January 12 in connection with the probe into the Karur campaign stampede that claimed 41 lives last year, party sources said on Sunday.
Vijay is scheduled to depose at around 11 am in response to a summons issued by the CBI on January 6 under Section 179 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), under which he has been cited as a witness in the case.
“After consultations with senior advocates and party functionaries, Vijay has decided to cooperate fully with the investigation and appear before the CBI,” sources said. “Legal experts have advised that if any issues arise during questioning, appropriate remedies can be sought before the court. Since the party itself had earlier sought transfer of the probe from the State police to a central agency or judicial supervision, avoiding the summons now would not be in our interest,” the source added.
The CBI is probing the stampede that occurred on September 27, 2025, at Velusamipuram in Karur during a TVK election campaign event, in which 41 people were killed and at least 110 others were injured. The Supreme Court had ordered a CBI investigation into the incident.
Earlier, the agency had examined several TVK office-bearers, including N Anand, Aadhav Arjuna, CTR Nirmal Kumar and Mathiyazhagan, as well as the Karur District Collector (IAS) and the Superintendent of Police (IPS), over December 29, 30 and 31, recording nearly 19.5 hours of statements.
As part of the ongoing probe, teams from the CBI, the Union Home Ministry and the Central Forensic Science Laboratories under the Directorate of Forensic Science Services on Saturday inspected the campaign bus used by Vijay during the Karur event. The bus, brought from Chennai and parked at the PWD guest house in Karur, was examined for its CCTV systems and other onboard facilities. The driver, Bharanidharan (34), was also questioned.
“Officials verified the quality and positioning of the cameras, and the entire inspection was video recorded,” a source familiar with the exercise said, adding that the checks were prompted by reports that high-resolution cameras had been installed on the bus.