On January 22, 2026, the Supreme Court refused to give broad orders in a PIL seeking comprehensive rules to stop stampedes in large gatherings like religious events, rallies, and yatras. The Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant allowed the petitioner, Tumbalam Gooty Venkatesh, to take the matter to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and the Election Commission of India (ECI). The Chief Justice questioned whether courts should interfere in crowd management and law and order issues. The petitioner wanted the Centre to create a binding standard operating procedure (SOP) for crowd safety and real-time updates during big events, especially political rallies under the model code of conduct. The Bench noted that these are matters best handled by law enforcement experts. It observed the petitioner had already raised the issue with the MHA on December 18, 2025. The Supreme Court said it was right to let the authorities consider the proposal first and asked the petitioner to also share it with the ECI. During the hearing, the Court asked if it could order sweeping crowd control guidelines. The petitioner’s lawyer reminded the Court of earlier cases where it had intervened for vulnerable people's safety. He mentioned recent tragedies in Karur and the RCB event, which caused 56 deaths, and said only the National Disaster Management Authority was handling such matters piecemeal. The lawyer argued for a minimum safety standard and said the MHA had not replied to his requests. The Court pointed out there was little time between the petition filing and the representation to MHA and said officials must be given time to respond. The PIL was then dismissed.