Tamil Nadu Wants CBI Out, SIT Probe to Continue in Karur Stampede
State battles Supreme Court to protect its own SIT investigation.
The Tamil Nadu government has filed an urgent application before the Supreme Court seeking vacation of its October 13 interim order that transferred the investigation into the devastating Karur stampede, which resulted in 41 deaths and over 60 injuries, to the Central Bureau of Investigation, describing the directive as a drastic step taken without affording the state an opportunity to be heard.
In a detailed affidavit submitted by the Home Department, the state has strongly objected to the apex court’s decision, arguing that the CBI probe was ordered prematurely—even before the question of maintainability of the original writ petition was adjudicated—and effectively amounted to allowing the petition at an interlocutory stage without following due process of law.
Tamil Nadu has simultaneously requested the Supreme Court to immediately lift the suspension imposed on the Justice Aruna Jagadeesan Commission of Inquiry and to permit the Madras High Court-monitored Special Investigation Team, headed by decorated IPS officer Asra Garg, to continue its independent and transparent probe without central interference.
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The state has defended its district administration and police force at length, highlighting that a meticulous bandobast plan involving 606 personnel, elaborate traffic diversions, and full compliance with National Disaster Management Authority guidelines was executed, thereby rendering all allegations of negligence or lapses levelled by the petitioners completely baseless and politically motivated.
Accusing the petitioners, including functionaries linked to Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) whose rally triggered the September 27 tragedy, of indulging in forum shopping and mala fide litigation, the government pointed out that the Madras High Court had already evaluated and rejected identical demands for a CBI probe after hearing all parties, making any fresh intervention by the Supreme Court legally untenable at this stage.
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