The Bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi took up the matter and signalled concern over developments in the High Court, observing that “something wrong” appeared to be happening there, referring to a report submitted by the Registrar General.
Senior Advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul, appearing for TVK, pointed out that the State government had recently filed an affidavit blaming the party for negligence and sought that the Supreme Court’s interim order directing a CBI inquiry be vacated. Kaul argued that the new affidavit required detailed hearing.
The Bench noted it was aware of the developments and sought to understand the rationale behind the State’s proposed Commission of Inquiry, especially after the Supreme Court had earlier stayed its appointment.
Senior Advocate P Wilson, appearing for the State, said the Commission would only recommend preventive and regulatory measures and would not interfere with the ongoing investigation. He added that the High Court had only dealt with issues relating to Standard Operating Procedures and crowd management.
Justice Maheshwari questioned the need and purpose of the commission and expressed concern over procedural issues in the High Court, including observations made in the Registrar General’s report.
Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra, for the petitioners, argued that the State was seeking reliefs not contemplated before the High Court or the Supreme Court earlier, and that the Commission’s statutory mandate was separate from the investigation.
The Bench agreed that the matter required full hearing.
During the hearing, the Supreme Court issued notice in the Special Leave Petition. The Registrar General’s report was taken on record and directed to be supplied to all parties. The matter will be heard in detail at the next listing.
On October 13, the Court had ordered a CBI investigation into the Karur stampede, observing that the incident had a direct bearing on the fundamental rights of citizens. It had also constituted a three-member committee headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice Ajay Rastogi to oversee the investigation.