Rajinikanth in politics? Subramanian Swamy scoffs at idea, calls it a joke

Rajinikanth said, "If it is God's will, I will enter politics"

Will he, won’t he? The possibility of Tamil Nadu's most popular star Rajinikanth taking the plunge into politics has been the subject of speculation for years now. The actor on Monday, left his fans even more puzzled by saying, "If it is God's will, I will enter politics."

Rajinikanth also said if he enters politics, he will be truthful and will not entertain people who want to make money. While his comments were welcomed by his fans, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy was not pleased.

He called it a 'joke' and advised him to stay out of politics, reports News18.

Swamy, who is known for his controversial remarks, said, "Rajini has been with various parties and has no ideology. Rajini is a mere distraction."

He went on to say that Rajinikanth was not even a Tamilian; “in fact, he is a Marathi from Bengaluru,” he said. Swamy also took potshots at the megastar’s fans. “It is a cult following,” he said. Swamy said that cinema people are good at giving statements as their dialogues are scripted by somebody else.

What did the Tamil superstar say to his fans:

"God decides what we have to do in life. Right now, he wants me to be an actor and I'm fulfilling my responsibility. If God willing, I will enter politics tomorrow. If I enter, I will be very truthful and will not entertain people who are in this to make money. I won't work with such people".

Rajnikanth has old relations with politics:

Two decades ago, Rajnikanth made a brief debut in politics, which he now calls "political accident".

In 1996, during the Tamil Nadu assembly election campaign, Rajinikanth denounced J Jayalalithaa and her politics. His strong remarks contributed to her defeat.

"I did a mistake by supporting a political alliance 21 years ago. It was a political accident. Since then, politicians have misused my name on several occasions. But I have to clarify, I'm not joining any party," he added.

However, since then, Rajnikanth has tried his best to distance himself from politics.

Subramanian Swamy's comment on Tamil actors

Earlier Swamy had called actor Kamal Haasan - a boneless wonder and pompous idiot.

Responding to a poll question, "will you accept if Kamal Hassan joins bjp and runs government as per his wish", Swamy tweeted, "I don't know about BJP but I will oppose this boneless wonder and a pompous idiot called Kamal Hasan."


In April, Rajinikanth cancelled his visit to Sri Lanka owing to the request of Tamil Nadu politicians.

According to The News Minute, Subramanian Swamy reacted to this saying, "Rajinikanth doesn’t know politics."

Swamy was at his most sarcastic while talking to reporters. "Do you still want actors in politics? Are you not tired already? Now we should only have politicians in politics," he said.

When asked how he would react if Rajinikanth did decide to enter politics, Swamy said, “Why should he come to politics? His talent is in films. He doesn’t know politics.”

Swamy's remarks not in sync with BJP
 

When by-election was being held to fill the vacancy caused by the death of former chief minister Jayalalithaa, this March, Rajnikanth was consistently asked about the candidate he favoured.

The superstar said in a tweet, "My support is for no one in the coming election".

Rajinikanth's statement came days after music composer and BJP candidate for the bypoll, Gangai Amaran, called on him.

Amaran's son Venkat Prabhu had tweeted on Sunday that the actor had wished him 'success' in his political innings during the brief meeting.

He had also posted a picture of his father with Rajinikanth at the latter's residence.

Ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi visited Rajinikanth at his residence in Chennai. The photo opportunity with the superstar was an attempt to boost the BJP’s performance in Tamil Nadu ahead of the polls.

In April 2004, Rajinikanth had voiced his support for the BJP-AIADMK alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. His decision was based on BJP’s promise that it would strive for interlinking of India’s rivers as a solution to the drinking water crisis.

Rajnikanth's fans happy

Subramanian Swamy may not be pleased, but Tamil superstar's fans will welcome his entry into the political arena. A Tweeple even conducted an online poll to ask: If an artist is chosen to be the next president of India, which legend do you wish to see in Rashtrapati Bhavan? 

Most of the respondents voted for Rajnikanth.

Here are some Twitter reactions: