Bengaluru, Sept. 29 -- Actor-turned-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party has moved the Madras high court alleging political conspiracy behind the deadly Karur stampede during the actor's political rally on September 27. Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu police registered a criminal case against leaders of TVK. The death toll rose to 40 on Sunday. Vijay on Sunday also announced a financial assistance of Rs.20 lakh to the families of the deceased. He said Rs.2 lakh would be given to those who sustained injuries. TVK sought an independent probe into the matter while mentioning its petition on Sunday before Justice M Dhandapani, requesting an urgent hearing. The petition filed through the party's joint general secretary CTR Nirmal Kumar, is likely to be heard by the Madurai bench of the Madras high court on Monday. The plea has alleged "conspiracy" behind the incident and demanded an "impartial probe" by an independent agency, or a court-monitored investigation. Incidentally, in August this year, when TVK had approached the HC claiming the Tamil Nadu police was imposing unreasonable restrictions on its rallies, including prohibiting pregnant women from participating, the court had cautioned the party and asked it to act responsibly. At the time, the court had also suggested that the police and the state come up with a uniform system, including set conditions for all political parties to hold public rallies. The court had also said at the time that Vijay, as TVK chief, must ensure safe conduct of events and "set an example" by asking pregnant women and persons with disabilities to stay away from such gatherings. In connection to Saturday's stampede, the party came under sharp criticism from several quarters for the poor arrangement at the week-end political rally where the crowd continued to swell as Vijay's arrival from Namakkal district got delayed by many hours. And when he finally arrived at the venue at around 7 pm the tragedy was awaiting to unfold. The actor-politician said he was deeply anguished over the incident, which claimed more than 30 lives and left many others injured. Expressing his condolences to the bereaved families in a social media post on Sunday, he said, "It is not a huge amount for the loss you have suffered. I know your loss cannot be replaced. It is an irreparable loss. However, it is my duty to stand next to you in this hour and share your grief." He added that he would pray for the speedy recovery of those injured and assured that his party men would provide all possible support those undergoing treatment in hospitals. Vijay said the incident in Karur defied imagination and that he could not describe the pain he was enduring. "My eyes and mind are clouded with sorrow. The faces of the people I met at the rally have been flashing in my mind ever since," he said. Reiterating his commitment to help the affected families, he said, "By the Grace of God, let us strive to recover from this." The stampede occurred during Vijay's rally after crowd double the permitted size broke through barricades in sweltering heat. The tragedy unfolded around 8PM when the surging crowd of over 60,000-double the police-permitted 30,000-broke past barricades as Vijay appeared on stage. Many victims were women and children who had travelled from across western Tamil Nadu to see Vijay, a Tamil cinema icon. Tamil Nadu CM Stalin has announced Rs.10 lakh ex gratia to the families of those dead and Rs.1 lakh for those injured. The government also announced a commission to be headed by retired judge Aruna Jagadeesan to probe the circumstances that led to the stampede, Stalin said. The government announced it would cover all medical expenses, instructing that no charges be levied on patients at private hospitals....