Rajini attacks CM for being absent at MK burial

Tamil superstar and aspiring politician Rajinikanth on Monday launched a frontal attack on Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami for not being present at the burial of DMK chief M Karunanidhi on the Marina Beach.

Speaking at the condolence meeting for Karunanidhi organised by the Nadigar Sangam here, Rajinikanth said he would launched a protest against the government if it had gone on an appeal against the Madras High Court order allotting space at Marina Beach for Karunanidhi’s burial.

He said the chief minister’s absence at the last rites of Karunanidhi painted the state in a poor light.

“I don't know whether I can say this here, but there was something amiss in the funeral. When the entire national leadership including Congress president Rahul Gandhi was there, our chief minister was missing,” he said.

“Shouldn't the chief minister have been there with his entire Cabinet? I am sorry to say — do these people think they are MGR or Jayalalithaa — the era of stalwarts is gone,” he said.

Paying rich tributes to Karunanidhi, Rajinikanth said the people of Tamil Nadu, for whom the DMK chief worked tirelessly, had paid a fitting tribute to him by descending on the Marina Beach.