The Madras High Court on Friday permitted the Tamil Nadu government led by Chief Minister Vijay to proceed with its decision to provide government jobs to the families of those who died in the Karur stampede tragedy in September last year. However, the court clarified that the appointments would remain temporary and subject to further judicial review.
A division bench of the Madurai Bench comprising Justice CV Karthikeyan and Justice R Sakthivel observed that interfering with a government policy decision at this stage would be “extremely narrow". At the same time, the court said it would examine whether such appointments could be granted without a broader and uniform policy framework for employment assistance in cases involving victims of public tragedies.
The court also allowed the Tamil Nadu government to hold a scheduled public event at 3 pm on Friday for handing over appointment letters to the victims’ families.
“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 court also took suo motu cognisance of the matter by adding the Member Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) as a party and directing the official to submit a report on the rules governing compassionate appointments and whether those guidelines were followed in the present case.
The observations came while the court was hearing a public interest litigation seeking to prevent the Tamil Nadu government from offering government employment to the families of the 41 people who died in the Karur TVK rally stampede.
The petitioner argued that there was no consistent government policy allowing permanent employment in such circumstances and claimed that the decision could violate constitutional guarantees of equality and equal opportunity under Articles 14 and 16.
The plea also requested the court to stop the issuance of appointment orders until proceedings related to the Karur stampede before the Supreme Court reach a conclusion. The petitioner argued that granting irreversible administrative benefits before the apex court’s decision could create legal and administrative difficulties.
Responding to the petition, the Tamil Nadu government told the High Court that a similar challenge had previously been raised before the Supreme Court but was later withdrawn. The state also referred to the precedent of government employment being provided to families of victims of the Thoothukudi police firing.
Chief Minister Vijay is scheduled to visit Karur on Friday, marking his first trip to the district after assuming office in May. During the visit, he will meet the families of the 41 victims who died in the stampede at a TVK rally addressed by him on September 27, 2025.
As part of the programme, Vijay will distribute appointment orders on compassionate grounds to members of 32 affected families. The beneficiaries will receive positions in different government departments according to their educational qualifications.
The chief minister will also assess relief and rehabilitation measures for the affected families. The visit comes amid political tensions, with the TVK alleging that the DMK government attempted to disrupt the programme, a claim rejected by the opposition party.
State Minister N Anand said only 5,000 people holding QR code entry passes would be permitted to attend the “Makkal santhippu" (people’s meet event) scheduled for 11 am at a private college ground on the Karur-Salem Highway. He urged attendees to follow police instructions.
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