Rajinikanth a suitable ally' for BJP, says Kamal Haasan

Chennai: After announcing his intention to launch a political party, actor-activist Kamal Haasan on Monday reiterated his aversion to the BJP, saying “saffron is not my colour” as he is a rationalist. He went on to suggest that his friend Rajinikanth is a “suitable ally” of the ruling party at the Centre because of his religious beliefs.

In an interview to a television channel, Kamal accused both AIADMK and DMK of corruption and asserted that he was taking a plunge into politics on the plank of fighting against graft. During the course of the interview, Kamal also spoke about working with Rajinikanth in the future on “issues of mutual interest” and launching his political party by the end of 2017.

“The people of Tamil Nadu have witnessed the corruption of both DMK and AIADMK. My fight is against corruption. I cannot commit a time but we are trying to launch (the new party) before New Year. I am talking to various people, taking advice from them. As there is no time limit, I cannot say,” the legendary star was quoted as saying by the television channel.

He was responding to questions on his political launch and when he would take a formal plunge into electoral politics. Kamal has been on a “learning curve” for the past few weeks by meeting politicians like Kerala chief minister Pinnarayi Vijayan and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and sharing ideas on fighting corruption and communalism.

Kamal has been maintaining that “saffron was definitely not his colour” and reiterated his statement saying he still stood by it. On Rajinikanth’s entry into politics, he said: “I speak to Rajini regularly, he is a friend. I informed him when I decided to join politics. Although there are no plans right now, I am open to working with him. He seems like a more suitable ally for the saffron party because of his religious beliefs, while I am a rationalist.”