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Actor, ex-BJP leader Devan says TVK offered him top post in Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram: Actor and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devan on Monday said that the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) offered him the post of Kerala state president and that he would hold final discussions with party chief and Tamil Nadu chief minister Joseph Vijay on September 10 regarding this
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Thiruvananthapuram: Actor and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devan on Monday said that the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) offered him the post of Kerala state president and that he would hold final discussions with party chief and Tamil Nadu chief minister Joseph Vijay on September 10 regarding this.
Devan, who served as the BJP state vice-president, resigned last week citing differences with the party leadership and its style of functioning. In 2021, he had joined the BJP after merging a party he led with it.
“They (TVK leadership) have verbally offered me the post of the state president of the party in Kerala. I had a few video-conference calls with some of the party’s leaders. But Vijay will take the final decision. I don’t know what he’s thinking. So there will be a final round of talks in September,” he told reporters.
Devan, an actor known for playing characters with negative shades in Malayalam and other South Indian film industries, said he and Vijay have similarities in political approach with common goals such as ending corruption and striking down on communalism.
“Vijay has been practically implementing these ideals over the past 100 days. I have been watching him. Vijay’s political movement is not new. It has been growing over the years,” he said.
While Devan may aspire to grow the TVK’s roots in neighbouring Kerala, historically, Tamil Nadu-based parties have not achieved political success across the border. While parties like DMK and AIADMK have units in Kerala, they have not won Assembly or parliamentary seats in the past. Except for winning a few local body wards in border areas in districts like Palakkad, Thiruvananthapuram and Idukki, such parties have largely bitten the dust.
Devan said that there is an atmosphere of fear among sections of the public, including Hindus, about the BJP and the RSS. “I left the BJP because I felt my ideals would be stripped away if I continued in that party,” he said.
