Jaya’s Gone, Karunanidhi’s Ill, I’m Here to Fill the Void: Rajini
Rajinikanth unveiled a statue of MG Ramachandran at Dr MGR Institute on account of its 30th anniversary.
advertisement
In his first public speech after making a political entry in December 2017, Rajinikanth said he decided to make a political entry to fill in the void created by great leaders like J Jayalalithaa and M Karunanidhi. He said Jayalalithaa was a great leader and he has learnt a lot from Karunanidhi.
Rajinikanth, who was speaking at the Dr MGR Educational and Research Institute in Chennai, also unveiled a statue of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MG Ramachandran (MGR) on account of the university’s 30th anniversary, on Monday, 5 March.
Training guns at the current All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government, he said he expected it to organise a film event when it celebrated 100 years of MGR, since he belonged to the film industry, but none of the actors were invited.
He further went on to say that he had to step into politics since the present government wasn't doing its duty. He said that he didn't expect the AIADMK to welcome him in politics and alleged the party of discouraging people like him.
Calling MGR a 'yug purush', he said that governance for people was MGR's ideology and he is here to replicate it. Promising clean, good and people-oriented governance, he said there will not be another MGR in the next 1,000 years. However, Rajinikanth is anti-Tamil.
Actors Prabhu, son of late thespian Sivaji Ganesan, and Vijayakumar were amongst those from the film industry present on the occasion.
This was Rajinikanth's first major public engagement since he revealed his political intentions on December 31, 2017.
Retorting to the allegations thrown by Rajini against the party, Ponnaiyan, AIADMK chief spokesperson, told ANI, “The AIADMK is like an eagle... it flies very high. Sparrows can't keep pace with that of an eagle. The legacy of MGR is strongly with the AIADMK. No one can take that away.”
Fisheries Minister Jayakumar also called out Rajini’s speech.
DMK leader MK Stalin too, commented on Rajini’s statement, saying: “There is no political vacuum in Tamil Nadu. I cannot accept that. People will vote for DMK when election is announced,” reports ANI.
Political Hoardings Stoke Controversy
After huge banners welcoming Rajinikanth were placed close to six kilometres on the stretch of a main road in Chennai’s Maduravoyal leading to the MGR institute, the actor-turned-politician requested his fans not to put up illegal hoardings.
The banners were put to welcome Rajinikanth at the 30th anniversary event of the institute.
The banners had stoked controversy after a well-known activist, Traffic Ramaswamy, alleged that the posters have been put up in violation of rules and are causing problems for pedestrians. He has threatened to complain to the Madras High Court on Tuesday, 6 March, reported NDTV.
“I will be visiting the area of Maduravoyal up to Valasaravakkam as thousands of Rajini banners have been erected at the expense of pedestrian life. If not removed, I will remove them”, said Ramaswamy, according to The News Minute (TNM).
Demanding an apology from the politician, Jayaraman had said, “He must apologise for this whole thing and an FIR must be filed against all those people who have been involved in putting up these illegal banners”.
Earlier in the day, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan made a snide remark on the aforementioned billboards of Rajinikanth earning the wrath of pedestrians, saying "change must begin from within”.
(Hey there, lady! What makes you laugh? Do you laugh at sexism, patriarchy, and misogyny? Do 'sanskaari' stereotypes crack you up? This Women's Day, join The Quint's Ab Laugh Naari campaign. Pick up that beer, say cheers, and send us photographs or videos of you laughing out loud at buriladki@thequint.com.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)