‘On A Temporary Basis’: Madras HC Gives Nod For Jobs To Karur Stampede Victims' Kin Ahead Of Vijay's Visit

Karur Stampede Row: The Madras High Court on Friday allowed Chief Minister Vijay-led Tamil Nadu government to provide government jobs to families of victims who lost their lives in the Karur stampede tragedy in September last year. The bench, however, said that the appointments would be temporary and subject to judicial review.

A division bench of Justice CV Karthikeyan and Justice R Sakthivel of the Madurai Bench observed that it would be “extremely narrow” for the court to interfere with a policy decision of the government. The bench, however, said that it would examine whether such appointments could be made without a uniform government policy governing employment offered to victims of public tragedies.

It also permitted the state government

to proceed with a public function, scheduled to be held at 3 pm today, to give appointment letters to the families of the victims.

“The State shall proceed with the function on the condition that employment would be on a temporary basis, subject to judicial review. We intend to hear the matter by the end of this month before the prospective appointees receive their first salary,” the high court observed as quoted by LiveLaw.

The high court also suo motu impleaded the Member Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) and directed the official to file a report on the guidelines governing compassionate appointments and whether those norms were followed in the present case.

The high court made the observtion while hearing a public interest litigation seeking to restrain the Tamil Nadu government from offering government jobs to the families of the 41 people killed in the Karur TVK rally stampede.

The petitioner argued that there is no uniform policy for granting permanent government employment in such tragedies and contended that the move could violate the constitutional principles of equality and equal opportunity under Articles 14 and 16.

The petitioner also urged the court to restrain the government from issuing appointment orders until the proceedings related to the Karur stampede pending before the Supreme Court attain finality. He argued that granting irreversible administrative benefits before the apex court decides the matter could lead to legal and administrative complications.

Opposing the plea, the state government informed the High Court that a similar challenge to the proposed government jobs had earlier been raised before the Supreme Court but was subsequently withdrawn. The state also cited the precedent of government jobs being provided to the families of victims of the Thoothukudi police firing.

CM Vijay To Visit Karur Today

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay will be visiting Karur today, marking his first visit to the district after taking charge as Chief Minister in May. During the visit, he will meet the families of the 41 victims who died in the tragic stampede at a TVK rally addressed by him on September 27, 2025.

As part of the visit, Vijay will hand over appointment orders on compassionate grounds to members of 32 families affected by the stampede. The beneficiaries will be appointed in various government departments based on their educational qualifications.

He will also review relief and rehabilitation efforts for the affected families. The visit comes amid political tensions, with the TVK alleging that the DMK government attempted to obstruct the programme, a charge denied by the opposition party.

State Minister N Anand has said that only 5,000 people with QR code entry passes would be allowed to attend the “Makkal santhippu” (people’s meet event) scheduled at 11 am at a private college ground on the Karur-Salem Highway. He appealed to people to follow police guidelines.