Rajinikanth dumps plan to enter politics

Tamil actor Rajinikanth has in a dramatic about-turn decided to dump his plan of taking the plunge into electoral politics saying his sudden health breakdown was “a warning from God.”

The superstar said that that he would serve the people without entering electoral politics.

Rajinikanth's announcement comes a day after he was discharged from a hospital in Hyderabad after being treated for high blood pressure for three days. The actor said that he was taking immunosuppressants. Even if he was vaccinated for coronavirus, if his health deteriorates during election tours, those travelling with him would have emotional and financial sufferings.

In a three-page letter that was tweeted, the actor apologised to Rajini Makkal Mandram and people who feel disappointed by his decision. “Only I know the pain while making this announcement,” he
said. The actor said that he did want people who believed in him to become a scapegoat.

He had amid much fanfare announced on December 3 that he would launch a political party in January. A formal announcement was to be made on December 31. "In the Assembly elections in 2021, with the support of the people, the party will surely win and give Tamil Nadu an honest, transparent, corruption-free government and politics free of caste or creed,” the actor had tweeted at the time..