Rajinikanth to make 'politically significant' announcement on March 12

More than two years after announcing his intention to take a plunge into politics, Tamil superstar Rajinikanth is expected to make a “politically significant” announcement after a meeting with office-bearers of his Rajini Makkal Mandram (RMM) here on Thursday.

Sources told DH that the 69-year-old actor might make some crucial announcements on his impending political entry, including the date of the launch of his party after a meeting scheduled at 8 am on Thursday.

A couple of hours later, Rajinikanth will address a press conference at a luxurious five-star hotel for the first time in several years, his publicist said.

During the press conference, sources said, Rajinikanth is likely to throw more light on his political plunge and announce further plans as he has already announced that he would face the 2021 Assembly elections.

The actor’s press conference is being keenly watched by all political parties including the ruling AIADMK and the principal Opposition DMK.

The meeting on Thursday comes just a week after Rajinikanth was closeted with office-bearers of RMM, basically his fan club, for over two hours during which he had expressed his interest not to hold the chief minister’s post.

After the meeting, Rajinikanth had told the media that he was “disappointed at a personal level” over an issue discussed at the meeting, leading to frenzied speculation about the actor’s political ambition.

“He is likely to clarify what the disappointment is and explain it to his office-bearers. And he might make some announcements too at the press conference,” a source in the RMM said.

Since the “disappointment remark” is being interpreted in many ways, Rajinikanth feels he should clear the air over the issue, the source said.

For the record, Tamilaruvi Manian, a former Congressman who is now advising Rajinikanth on his political entry, told DH that the meeting will indeed be politically significant.

“Of course, the meeting has huge political significance and importance. That is why a meeting of office-bearers has been called within a week of the last one. I don’t want to speculate any further. Let us wait for the meeting on Thursday,” Manian said.

Interestingly, Manian also met Rajinikanth on Wednesday at the latter’s upscale Poes Garden residence and was closeted with him for more than an hour.

The actor, who had kept millions of his fans on tenterhooks over his political entry for decades, had made a dramatic announcement on the last day of 2017 that he would take the political plunge in the 2021 elections.

The superstar maintains that the death of Dravidian stalwarts J Jayalalithaa and M Karunanidhi has resulted in a “leadership vacuum” and he intends to fill the void left by the two political giants.

The last two years have been a roller coaster ride for Rajinikanth as he landed in one controversy after another controversy over his statements that were perceived as supportive of the BJP.

The actor had more than once decried that there were attempts to paint him with the “BJP colour” though he has supported most of the controversial decisions of the Narendra Modi-led dispensation.