CHENNAI: Adding to the speculation that Rajinikanth supports the BJP, on Tuesday he welcomed the BJP’s promise of interlinking rivers. “By god’s grace and support of the people, if the NDA is voted to power again, they should on priority implement this project (inter-linking of rivers). If implemented, poverty will go away, crores of jobs will be created and livelihood of the farmers will improve,” Rajinikanth said, speaking to reporters at Poes Garden.
Rajinikanth had earlier said he was not supporting any party in the Lok Sabha elections and urged his fans to vote for any party that would solve Tamil Nadu’s water problems. Subsequently, the ruling AIADMK’s official newspaper claimed that the actor’s statement indicated his support to the AIADMK-BJP alliance.
However, on Monday when reporters queried him about the statement of actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan that Rajinikanth would support him, he said, “I have already made my stance clear and there is no change in that.”Interestingly, in the 2004 Lok Sabha election, Rajini extended support to the BJP. But, the DMK-Congress alliance swept the elections by winning all 40 seats in Tamil Nadu and Pudicherry.