Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) [India], September 30 : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Anurag Thakur on Tuesday said that the delegation of BJP-NDA leaders visiting Tamil Nadu's Karur will first hear the views of the people who lost their family members in the stampede before collecting feedback from officials and submitting a report regarding the tragic incident.
"...Let us first hear the views of the people who lost their family members, ask the local people, officials, get the feedback and then we will submit our report," Thakur, who is a part of the BJP-NDA delegation, told ANI.
The eight-member NDA-BJP delegation of leaders, who will visit Karur, arrived in Coimbatore on Tuesday. The delegation will investigate the circumstances that led to the September 27 stampede, meet with affected families, and submit a report.
BJP chief JP Nadda has constituted a delegation, which includes BJP MPs Anurag Thakur, Tejasvi Surya, Braj Lal, Aprajita Sarangi, Rekha Sharma, Shrikant Shinde from Shiv Sena, and Putta Mahesh Kumar from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). BJP MP Hema Malini is the convenor of the committee.
Meanwhile, Karur City Police have arrested Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam's (TVK) Karur West District Secretary, Mathiyazhagan, in connection with the stampede during the party chief Vijay's rally, which claimed 41 lives, ADGP Davidson Devasirvatham told ANI.
Police have also arrested Paun Raj, the Karur town functionary who arranged flagpoles and flex banners for the rally. Paun Raj was arrested as he provided shelter to TVK functionary Mathiyazhagan, the ADGP said over a phone call.
According to Chennai Police, YouTuber and journalist Felix Gerald has also been arrested in connection with the incident.
The incident occurred when a massive crowd at Vijay's rally in Karur reportedly turned chaotic, triggering panic among the crowd. As several attendees fainted, they were rushed to nearby hospitals.
The loss of lives in the tragic stampede on Saturday has gone up to 41 and includes 18 women and 10 children.
Earlier on Monday, Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, along with Union Minister L Murugan and Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagenthran, met the families of the victims
.Meanwhile, Chief Minister MK Stalin constituted a one-member commission headed by retired High Court judge Aruna Jagadeesan to probe the incident.
Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman called for the establishment of a standard operating procedure (SOP) for crowd management at large public events. CM Stalin also stressed the need for political parties and public organisations to implement strict guidelines for organising public gatherings responsibly.