BJP quiet on Kamal Haasan party launch: Watching Tamil Nadu scene, still evolving
kamal Haasan, who has made public remarks attacking the BJP and “right-wing Hindus” in recent past, on Wednesday launched his party ‘Makkal Needhi Maiam’ in Madurai.
4 min read
The BJP has been desperate to expand its base in Tamil Nadu.
While some BJP leaders appeared irked at actor Kamal Haasan, who launched his new political outfit in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday and attracted support from some rival leaders, the party officially sought to play the wait-and-watch role.
“We are not worried. The BJP has its own support base and ideological attraction, and we will go forward with that,” BJP general secretary P Muralidhar Rao, in charge of Tamil Nadu, said. “We are closely watching the situation. It is still evolving,” he said. The BJP has been desperate to expand its base in Tamil Nadu.
Haasan, who has made public remarks attacking the BJP and “right-wing Hindus” in recent past, on Wednesday launched his party ‘Makkal Needhi Maiam’ in Madurai.
While Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal was present at the launch event and greeted Haasan on stage, Kerala Chief Minister and CPI(M) leader Pinarayi Vijayan sent a video message, saying that Haasan’s decision to join politics will also enrich Kerala, and further embolden the vision of secularism, socialism and pluralistic society. Both Vijayan and Kejriwal are stringent critics of the BJP.
Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal joins Kamal Haasan for the launch of his party (Source: @maiamofficial)
Read | Kamal Haasan launches political party Makkal Needhi Maiam, calls for unity
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu, meanwhile, congratulated Haasan. The BJP-TDP alliance has recently soured after the TDP has been complaining about the Central government “ignoring” Andhra Pradesh, and BJP state unit leaders have publicly demanded snapping of ties ahead of state elections due next year. Sources in BJP said the party’s state unit did not find any merit in continuing the four-year alliance for either electoral advantage or its own growth in the state.
Reports have also said that Kamal Haasan had invited Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, too. Kumar is on an official visit to Japan. BJP’s Rao dismissed the messages and telephone calls to Haasan, calling them “social courtesy.”
Denying that such developments will have any impact on BJP’s Tamil Nadu plans, he said, “Kamal Haasan has acted in many Telugu films and Mr (Chandrababu) Naidu, having been in public life for so many years in the state, naturally has deep connections with actors and film personalities. He made the call in that context.”
Read | I am your tool, not leader: Kamal Haasan tells supporter
Makkal Needhi Maiam roughly means People’s Justice Centre
While admitting that political developments in Tamil Nadu such as Haasan’s new party or Rajnikanth’s entry into politics are unavoidable due to the political vacuum in the state following AIADMK supremo and former CM J Jayalalithaa’s death, and a slow disintegration of AIADMK thereafter, some party leaders indicated that the emergence of these two actors on the political scene will only divide votes that could go against the BJP.
A BJP leader working closely with Tamil Nadu unit said, “The BJP and RSS have a different support base, and the party is working hard to expand it. We will have our own plans and ways to strengthen our support base. We can contemplate on suitable alliances too (when elections approach).”
You May Like
