Tamil Nadu chief minister M. K. Stalin on Friday accused the BJP and the central government of lacking genuine concern over the tragic stampede in Karur.

He said the saffron party was attempting to capitalise on the incident in view of next year’s Assembly election.

Stalin questioned why a delegation of NDA MPs was sent to Karur so urgently to look into the cause of the stampede.

He said teams were not sent to inquire about the Manipur riots, Morbi bridge accident in Gujarat, or the Kumbh Mela stampede in Uttar Pradesh.

"Of course, there's no interest. It is a petty act of seeking political gain in view of the 2026 Assembly election," Stalin said at a government event in Chennai.

Earlier on Friday, the Madras High Court rejected BJP leader Uma Anandan's plea for a CBI probe into the Karur stampede. She had moved the court citing several questions, including possible official apathy behind the fatal incident.

A Bench of Justices M. Dhandapani and M. Jothiraman noted that the Tamil Nadu Police's investigation is at an initial stage and that petitioners seeking a CBI probe were not victims of the stampede.

"If aggrieved persons come to this court, we will rescue. Who are you? Don't treat this court as the political arena. If, in the investigation, something goes wrong, you come. This is the initial stage," the court remarked.

The division bench also directed the petitioner to approach the Madurai bench of the High Court, which has jurisdiction over the area.

On the same day, the HC ordered the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) under senior IPS officer Asra Garg to probe the September 27 stampede during actor-politician Vijay's rally in Karur that killed 41 people and left over 60 injured. Garg is currently Inspector General of Police, North Zone.

A single judge bench also reportedly criticised the functionaries of Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) over the incident.