Puducherry Police have refused permission for actor Vijay's proposed December 5 roadshow and have instead advised him to hold a public meeting in an open ground, prompting uncertainty within his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK). This comes even as the party had already deployed senior leaders Bussy Anand and Aadhav Arjuna to prepare the ground for the event, which was expected to mark Vijay's political push in the Union Territory.
A senior police officer told NDTV that the decision was taken after a high-level review. "We had a consultative meeting with the Chief Minister, and this was decided," the officer said. When asked why the roadshow was considered unfeasible, he explained that "the narrow roads in Puducherry can't hold the massive crowds Vijay draws."
Police have reiterated that a traditional public meeting would be easier to secure, with better crowd regulation and safety measures. TVK, however, has not responded officially. Party general secretary Bussy Anand remained tight-lipped and did not comment despite repeated attempts.
The Puducherry event was seen as a strategic move for Vijay, who commands a cult-like fan base across Tamil Nadu and a sizeable following in the former French colony as well. The political landscape in Puducherry is currently dominated by the ruling NR Congress-BJP alliance and the Congress-DMK combine, and TVK is keen to carve a space for itself in the competitive field.
However, concerns over crowd safety have intensified since the October stampede at TVK's Karur rally, where 41 people, including women and children, died in neighbouring Tamil Nadu. The tragedy, one of the worst political rally disasters in the state in recent memory, is now being probed by the CBI following Supreme Court directions.
The state has also framed a draft SOP for political parties to hold rallies.
Today, the retired Supreme Court Judge started meeting the public and other parties in Karur with regard to the tragedy.
Tamil Nadu Police had earlier blamed TVK and Vijay for the Karur incident, pointing to the "terrible delay" in the actor's arrival, which allegedly caused crowd surges, as well as inadequate arrangements for drinking water and food. TVK has strongly denied the allegations and instead accused the police of failing to manage the swelling crowds.
With the Puducherry police decision, TVK will now have to reassess its strategy. Whether Vijay will opt for a public meeting or attempt to renegotiate permissions remains unclear, but the denial has already triggered renewed debate over the scale of his political outreach and the challenges of crowd management surrounding his public appearances.
