BJP veteran K Annamalai on Sunday defended actor Vijay after the tragic stampede at a Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) rally other day, emphasising that the responsibility lies with the authorities, not the actor. He said, "It is not Vijay's fault. It is for the state police and intelligence to anticipate the crowd and deploy the police force adequately... Why did the police give them permission for 7 hours? Give it for 2 hours... As the Tamil Nadu BJP, we are demanding a CBI inquiry... The state CM wants a one-man former judge inquiry commission, and he also handpicked the judge. How can it be a fair inquiry?..."

It may be noted that 40 people lost their lives in the stampede, while many injured are undergoing treatment at the Government Medical College and Hospital in Karur.

Annamalai criticised the authorities, stating, "We clearly find fault with the local administration because it's very clear the government has to act as an honest broker... The government utterly failed yesterday... There were hardly 100 policemen on the ground... The complete responsibility and failure lie with the local and state administrations... TVK and Vijay also have to take responsibility for how the yatra was designed... For no more lives to be lost, Vijay and TVK have to rectify their mistakes, and the state government has to take 100% ownership for the utter failure of intelligence and deployment of manpower."

The BJP leader also visited the Government Medical College and Hospital to meet those injured in the stampede.