Chennai | Superstar Rajinikanth on Tuesday refuted a charge made by TVK leader Aadhav Arjuna that he was threatened by the DMK when he attempted to make a political entry, and said that "time will wait and reply".
The top actor termed the TVK general secretary's recent remark about him, which created a controversy, as "untrue".
Rajinikanth concluded his statement posted on social media 'X' by saying, "Time does not speak but waits and answers" Aadhav Arjuna's remark on the superstar resulted in a strong backlash from the top actor's fans, AIADMK chief Edappadi Palaniswami, Union Minister L Murugan and state Minister S Regupathy, BJP state chief Nainar Nagendran and Rajini's former advisor.
While addressing the party members during a protest against the state government here on March 12, Arjuna alleged that the "DMK threatened Rajinikanth when he tried to enter politics". He maintained that he was not criticising the actor but wanted to point out that TVK founder Vijay had the courage to withstand such pressure.
Condemning the remark, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said that Rajini earned respect from all sections of people, and speaking in a way that tarnished the actor's image was unacceptable.
"Entering politics or staying away from it is a matter of the individual's rights. We must respect the decision rather than attributing political motives and uttering defamatory remarks devoid of political decency," the former chief minister said in a post on 'X.' Rajinikanth's former advisor Ra Arjunamurthy strongly condemned the remark and urged the TVK founder to remove Arjuna from the party.
Tamil Nadu Minerals and Mines Minister Regupathy lashed out at TVK for the allegation and said the TVK was attempting to gain political mileage by uttering a "blatant lie." Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagenthran condemned Arjuna for his "unwanted remarks" against Rajini and said the latter was one of the most respected and celebrated personalities in Indian cinema and won several distinguished awards in recognition of his service.
"Beyond his remarkable artistic achievements, he is widely admired for his humility, spiritual outlook, and the immense affection he enjoys among the people across caste, religion, language and region," Nagenthran said in a post on 'X.' Attempts to gain publicity by targeting a personality who has goodwill of the people, reflected a lack of basic decorum, Nagenthran said and demanded an unconditional apology from Arjuna.
In his brief statement, Rajinikanth thanked all the political party leaders, ministers, well-wishers and fans who had supported him in the row.
