Rajinikanth and politician MK Alagiri with his son, Dayanidhi Azhagiri
Tamil Nadu politician
MK Alagiri, who has been coerced into sitting out the national election by his estranged father and party chief, will not do so quietly.
Mr Alagiri, who met with the Prime Minister yesterday, met this morning with superstar
Rajinikanth at his home in Chennai. "Rajinikanth is my friend...there was nothing political about this. I came for peace of mind," said the 63-year-old politician who was suspended from his party, the DMK, in January.
(M Karunanidhi's son MK Alagiri predicts doom for DMK in polls)Mr Alagiri, who represents Madurai in parliament, was missing from the DMK's list of candidates for the national election. "Don't hurt me by asking about him," said DMK chief M Karunanidhi to reporters about his elder son's exclusion.
For years, Mr Alagiri devoted his political strategy to undermining his brother, MK Stalin, who has been picked by their father as his political successor.
(Alagiri to sit out national election but may launch party after)Mr Alagiri has said he is considering launching his own party, but will take a final call after two months.
As a film star, Rajinikanth is unmatched in his popularity and stature. In 2011, television cameras of local channels followed him into the polling booth as he voted for the state election. They seemed to capture his hand hovering near the symbol of the AIADMK, the party that is headed by Jayalalithaa, who won that election.
In 1996, Rajinikanth had famously declared "Even God can't save Tamil Nadu if Jayalalithaa is elected to power". The DMK won that election. The superstar later made up with Jayalalithaa and she attended his daughter's wedding in Chennai in November 2004.