T.N. govt. notifies SOP for large public gatherings

The Tamil Nadu government has released a detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the regulation and management of public gatherings in the State on the directions of the Madras High Court. This comes against the backdrop of last September’s stampede which killed 41 people in Karur at a rally addressed by actor and TVK founder Vijay.

The SOP will apply to all public meetings, processions, road shows, demonstrations, protests, cultural and religious events and any other form of public gathering in Tamil Nadu where the anticipated number of participants exceeds 5,000. For events with fewer than 5,000 participants, the existing procedure for seeking permission from competent authorities will continue.

However, contrary to a proposal in an earlier draft SOP, the State did not mandate collection of security deposits from organisers of rallies and meetings in the final notification.

A Government Order dated January 5, 2026, said the SOP will not apply to religious gatherings organised as customary events in places of worship or to events where the venue or route is already fixed by established precedents.

District Collectors will notify designated places for public gatherings after consulting the respective Superintendents of Police in districts and Commissioners of Police in cities other than Chennai. In Chennai, the Commissioner of Police, Greater Chennai Police, will notify such venues in consultation with the Additional Commissioners of Police (Law and Order).

Inputs from representatives of recognised political parties shall be obtained before finalising the notification of venues. Prior concurrence from the concerned authorities is required if the venue is adjacent to National Highways, State Highways or any other public road.

Each venue must be assessed by a Public Works Department Engineer to determine its maximum crowd-holding capacity, including seating and standing arrangements, availability of parking space, adequacy of entry and exit routes, and emergency passages. The list of designated venues, along with their certified crowd capacities, must be reviewed at least once a year by the respective authorities.

The G.O. said any individual, organisation or political party seeking to conduct a public gathering must submit a written application to the jurisdictional police station or the sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) in the prescribed format. The application should clearly specify the venue, date and time of commencement and conclusion, anticipated maximum crowd size, names of important leaders or guests expected, number of speakers, number of vehicles expected and parking capacity.

For events scheduled at notified designated venues, applications must be submitted at least 10 days in advance, but not earlier than 21 days. For events proposed at alternative, non-notified venues, applications must be submitted at least 15 days in advance, but not earlier than 30 days.

In cases of protests or demonstrations of an urgent nature arising from sudden incidents or matters requiring immediate democratic expression, the respective District Collector/ Commissioner of Police in Chennai may at their discretion, permit receipt and processing of applications by the SDPO. Such incidents or matters must not have occurred earlier than three days prior to the date of application.

Applicants must include details of safety and management arrangements, such as first-aid booths, ambulances, volunteers and emergency response teams and also submit a written undertaking agreeing to adhere to the norms specified in the SOP.

Applications will be scrutinised by the SDPO. If additional information is required, a questionnaire may be issued to the organisers, who must respond within the stipulated time.

If more than one application is received for the same venue and date, the SDPO will consider them on a first-come first-serve basis, with priority given to recognised political parties. Orders granting or rejecting permission must be issued at least five days before the event.

For events where the anticipated crowd exceeds 50,000, applications must be submitted at least 30 days in advance, and the SDPO must issue orders at least 15 days before the proposed date.

In case of rejection, reasons must be recorded in writing and communicated promptly to the organiser. While processing applications, the SDPO must categorise events as low-risk, moderate-risk or high-risk. Police deployment will be at the rate of one personnel per 200 persons for low-risk events, one per 100 persons for moderate-risk events, and one per 50 persons for high-risk events.

Organisers may submit a revised application after rectifying deficiencies if permission is denied. They must also ensure the availability of at least one toilet per 500 persons, mobile toilets with six or eight units placed at intervals of 300 metres, four litres of drinking water per person per day (which may be scaled down based on duration) and one water point within every 100 metres, in addition to complying with other provisions specified in the SOP.

The State government directed the DGP/HoPF to implement the SOP with immediate effect and to introduce an online system for receiving applications, processing them, and granting or rejecting permission for public gatherings within six months.

Earlier, the State government had sought views and suggestions from various stakeholder departments and representatives of political parties at different stages of drafting the SOP. The draft SOP was placed before the High Court on November 19 last year. The court directed the State government to finalise and notify the SOP before January 5.

Published – January 06, 2026 09:38 pm IST