COIMBATORE: Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) Chief Coordinator S Seeman on Sunday welcomed the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin's call to the centre to award the Bharat Ratna to music maestro Ilaiyaraaja.
Speaking to reporters in Coimbatore, Seeman said nothing could make him prouder than this (Ilaiyaraaja getting the highest civilian award of the country).
Seeman had arrived in the city to take part in a public meeting of his party.
"I had asked Ilaiyaraaja to allow him to conduct a felicitation event for him, but he replied the state government would organise it. But I would hold a felicitation event for him soon," he said.
Commenting on the large gathering for TVK founder and actor-politician Vijay's event in Tiruchy on Saturday, he said the masses who are used to seeing actors on the big screen would come to see them in person off-screen.
"If (actors) Ajith Kumar and Rajinikanth appeared before the public an even larger crowd would gather. If actress Nayanthara came, the crowd would be twice as large," Seeman remarked, playing down the huge turnout for Vijay's public appearance.
He added that the size of the crowd does not matter but ideology matters for any party.
(The TVK leader commenced his state-wide political tour on Sunday.)
While speaking about caste census, Seeman questioned why Tamil Nadu is hesitating to conduct it when other states that do not even talk about social justice are carrying it out.
The NTK will not form any alliance with national and Dravidian parties, and would contest the election independently, he reiterated.