Superstar Rajinikanth on Thursday said that he never aspired to become the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, but only wanted a change in politics. He, however, stopped short of announcing the launch of his party.
In his first official press conference since December 31, 2017, when he had first announced his plunge into politics, Rajinikanth said he wanted to have an educated youth who was compassionate and had self-respect as the state’s chief minister.
Elaborating on his political roadmap, he said when he starts his own party, he plans to retain only a few party functionaries for important posts once the elections are over, according to The New Indian Express. This will reduce corruption since ruling party functionaries often indulge in bagging, he added.
He also plans to include young people in his prospective party. Rajinikanth said his plans for politics include different heads for his prospective party and possible government headed by it.
With a two-leadership system for party and the government, the former would act as an “opposition” to highlight issues and would not even hesitate to “remove” the head of the government if it fails to perform, he said, according to PTI.
Rajinikanth, however, did not announce the launch of his party and refused to take questions after his speech, reported India Today. He also said that there is now a vacuum in the state government. “There were two stalwarts in our politics, one was Jayalalithaa and one was Kalaignar (M Karunanidhi). People voted for them but now, there is a vacuum. Now, we need to create a new movement to bring change,” he was quoted as saying by NDTV.
He also called for a revolution, which he said must spread across Tamil Nadu and even India. “I want media to be united. You need to educate people. I am not 40 or 50. I am 71. If you don’t accept what I’m saying now, how will you accept in five years? I need to see the revolution then I’ll come to politics,” he said, according to The News Minute.
(With PTI inputs)