BJP is losing its influence, says Rajinikanth

Rajinikanth, who is often believed to have an affiliation towards BJP hinted that Modi is more powerful than the opposition. “If 10 people (the union of opposition parties formed ahead of Lok Sabha elections) gang up against a single person, (Modi) who is stronger?” Rajinikanth said.

Rajinikanth, Sarkar, Sarkar movie, Vijay, AIADMK, Sarkar protests, AIADMk Rajinikanth, censor board, india news, Tamil Nadu, Indian express

Commenting on BJP’s defeat in the five-state elections, the actor said the defeat shows the ruling party is losing its influence.

The five-state assembly election results have been a body blow to the ruling BJP government. The resurgent Congress party under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi is inching towards majority in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan and is having a neck-to-neck battle in Madhya Pradesh according to the latest election reports.

In Tamil Nadu, a state where BJP hasn’t had much success in the past, the assembly election results have been largely welcomed by major political parties. Actor Rajinikanth, who announced his entry into politics in December 2017, is expected to launch his political party anytime sooner. Commenting on BJP’s defeat in the five-state elections, the actor said the defeat shows the ruling party is losing its influence.

Speaking to the reporters at the Chennai airport on Tuesday, Rajinikanth said: “The results of the five-state assembly election clearly show that BJP is losing its influence.” The 67-year-old actor had earlier addressed Prime Minister Modi as the strongest leader. When the reporter asked Rajinikanth’s opinion about Modi’s loss despite campaigning in the five states, he said “This (the loss) is definitely a setback. There is no doubt about that.”

Rajinikanth, who is often believed to have an affiliation towards the saffron party hinted that Modi is more powerful than the opposition. “If 10 people (the union of opposition parties formed ahead of Lok Sabha elections) gang up against a single person, (Modi) who is stronger?” Rajinikanth told to the reporters this November after a confusion erupted over his statement about BJP.

Another superstar of the Tamil film Industry, Kamal Haasan, who floated his party ‘Makkal Needhi Maiyyam’ this February, has been a stern adversary of both the state and the Modi-led NDA government. On BJP’s defeat in the state assembly election, Kamal Haasan in a tweet said, “First sign of a new start, this is people’s verdict.”

Janardhan Koushik

Janardhan Koushik is Deputy Copy Editor of indianexpress.com. He is a New Media journalist with over five years of reporting experience in the industry. He has a keen interest in politics, sports, films, and other civic issues. Janardhan holds a Bachelor’s degree in Visual Communication from SRM Arts and Science College and a PG Diploma in New Media from Asian College of Journalism, one of the top ranked journalism schools in India. He started his career with India Today group as a sub-editor as part of the sports team in 2016. He has also a wide experience as a script-writer having worked for short-films, pilot films as well as a radio jockey cum show producer while contributing for an online Tamil FM. As a multilingual journalist, he actively tracks the latest development in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry utiling his well-established networks to contribute significantly to breaking news stories. He has also worked as a sports analyst for Star Sports. ... Read More