Rajinikanth to announce political standpoint on December 31

On Tuesday, the 67-year-old actor has started meeting his fans on a six-day programme

After weighing options for long on his political entry, actor Rajinikanth has on Tuesday said that he will announce his political standpoint on the last day of 2017. While meeting his fans in Chennai, he said that he is not new to politics, but one has to prepare well and have a strategy before entering into politics.

However, he said, this does not mean that he would enter politics, but that he would announce his stance on politics on the last day of 2017. 

On Tuesday, the 67-year-old actor has started meeting his fans as part of a six-day programme.

"Politics is a battle and one should be prepared to win if he enters into it. There are still issues related to politics, which make me reluctant about political entry," he said. The fans should focus on the positive thoughts and ignore the negativity in public domain, he said.

The announcement comes after several months of uncertainty over his entry into politics.

The rumours about his political entry have been strong after the demise of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) supremo J Jayalalithaa, which has created a political vacuum in Tamil Nadu. On Sunday, T T V Dhinakaran, nephew of V K Sasikala, comprehensively won the by-election from R K Nagar constituency, which fell vacant since the death of Jayalalithaa. 

While Rajinikanth has been dilly-dallying on his plans to enter politics, another noted actor Kamal Hasan has recently announced his entry into politics with a new party. Tamil Nadu has seen eminent actor-turned-politicians — M G Ramachandran and Jayalalithaa — ruling the state consistently for several years.