At DMK Meet, MK Stalin Takes Dig At Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan

Chennai: Taking a tacit dig at superstars Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, who are seen to have timed their political debuts following former chief minister Jayalalithaa's death and DMK boss M Karunanidhi's age and poor health, DMK leader MK Stalin on Sunday asserted that there was no vacuum, at least not in his party.

"There is no vacuum in DMK. A vacuum is filled as it is created," Mr Stalin said at a party conference in Erode.

His remarks come days after Rajinikanth, in his first public speech after announcing his decision to enter politics, said the state needed a strong leader.

"When there were two strong leaders like Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi, there was no vacuum... Tamil Nadu needs a leader and I have come to fill in," Rajinikanth had said earlier this month.

In December, Rajinikanth had announced he would launch a party and contest all 234 assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu in the next assembly elections due in 2021.

Last month, the other big star in the south, Kamal Haasan, launched his political party called Makkal Needhi Maiam, promising an end to corruption, education for all and jobs for the youth.

"Many parties are mushrooming with CM's chair dreams. Some are waiting for auspicious time to launch a party," Mr Stalin said, taking a dig at the two stars.

At the DMK conference, seen as a move to mobilise its cadre ahead of the 2019 general elections, Mr Stalin attacked the centre, saying the BJP-led government was trying to "thrust Hindi and Sanskrit on the state". Such a move has to be scuttled, he added.

Erode happens to be the home town of late rationalist leader Periyar, who statues were vandalised recently in Tamil Nadu following a tweet by BJP leader H Raja.

Claiming that there was "dual rule" in Tamil Nadu, Mr Stalin accused the governor of "having a parallel administration".