Tamil Nadu leaders welcome Rajinikanth’s political entry

Chief minister K Palaniswami, whose ruling faction suffered a shock defeat in the RK Nagar Assembly constituency, said anyone was free to enter politics in a democracy.

Political leaders in Tamil Nadu on Sunday welcomed actor Rajinikanth’s entry into politics and his decision to contest the next Assembly elections.

Movie superstar Rajinikanth gives a thumbs up sign to his fans after announcement to launch his own political party, in Chennai, on Sunday. (AP)

DMK leader MK Stalin said Rajinikanth had finally put a full stop to the expectations of his fans but asserted that the DMK was not bothered by the actor’s political plunge.

Chief minister K Palaniswami, whose ruling faction suffered a shock defeat in the RK Nagar Assembly constituency, said anyone was free to enter politics in a democracy but none could vanquish the AIADMK.

The AIADMK asserted that the people of Tamil Nadu would always vote for the party’s founder, M G Ramachandran, and its late chief, J Jayalalithaa, and added that its vote bank could not be split.

“I am yet to read his (Rajinikanth’s) statement. It is his decision. He has only announced to enter politics...Nobody is born nor will be born in the future to vanquish the AIADMK,” Palaniswami said.

Palaniswami’s rival TTV Dinakaran, who was elected from RK Nagar by a whopping margin, also hailed Rajinikanth’s decision.

On Sunday, Rajinikanth said he would practice “spiritual politics” and contest all the 234 Assembly seats in the next elections. He said his entry into politics was a “compulsion of time”.

Tamil Nadu BJP chief Tamilisai Soundararajan welcomed Rajinikantha’s decision and hoped he would support the BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

State Congress president S Thirunavukkarasar pointed out that the actor had not come into politics fully and his comment that the system was rotten was aimed at the ruling AIADMK.

Political analyst Jhon Arokiasamy told IANS: “Urging his fans not to comment on the political situation till the party is floated shows that Rajinikanth wants to see through safely his two upcoming movies.

“His main task now is to set up the party infrastructure across the state, reactivating many of his fan clubs and converting them into a political force.”

Arokiasamy added: “What Rajinikanth’s announcement will be doing is to increase the perception that the influence of two Dravidian parties - AIADMK and DMK - in Tamil Nadu is on the decline.”