‘Rajinikanth quitting politics?’
That’s what news headlines on Thursday morning, 29 October, said after a ‘note’ purportedly authored by the actor has been in circulation. In the ‘note’ the star has allegedly cited the coronavirus pandemic, his age, health condition and uncertainty over the availability of a vaccine as reasons behind his decision to quit politics.
But wait, when exactly did he join politics? The last we heard was during the release of Petta, when a few cryptic tweets and a number of press conferences hinted at his entry into it.
Sources close to the actor told The Quint said the actor never authored any such note, although he is doing poorly. “We want our Thalaivar to remain healthy and happy. Whether he enters politics or not is not our main concern now. In any case, work is being carried out by the fans and cadre based on his ideologies,” a source said.
To put an end to rumours, the actor took to Twitter to issue a clarification.
“The leaked letter is not mine, but the information on my health and doctors’ advice is true. I shall discuss with Rajini Makkal Mandram and shall announce my political stand at an appropriate time.”Rajinikanth tweeted
Buying More Time to Step into the Ring?
Rajini has been dropping hints about his political aspirations since the 1990s, which were only made it official on 31 December 2017. He had said: “I will enter politics and launch a party to serve the people of Tamil Nadu as the (political) system in Tamil Nadu has been ruined.”
Sparking speculation of an alliance with the BJP, he had added, “My politics would be a spiritual politics, treating all as equals,” and as a precursor to the formation of a political party, the actor’s fan clubs had been converted into the Rajini Makkal Mandram (RMM).
In 1991, however, his punch line, ‘Even God cannot save Tamil Nadu’ if the AIADMK comes back to power in 1991, resulted in the party’s humiliating defeat, with it winning just four Assembly seats out of 234, which further led to Jayalalithaa herself losing. In the aftermath, Karunanidhi expressed his gratitude to the icon saying that he had blessed the DMK-TMC alliance.
Will Rajinikanth Enter Politics?
Neither did Rajinikanth take the plunge for the 2019 Parliamentary elections, nor did for the rural local body polls the same year. He claimed that his party was going to be ready for the upcoming Assembly Elections in 2021. However, with the polls just months away, there has been no official word from the actor. A source said that a statement is expected from the actor before Diwali.
A few other sources said that the BJP, which is the ruling party at the Centre, was trying to hold talks with the actor regarding the future of his political journey.
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