C Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday (May 10). Ending the suspense on Tamil Nadu government formation, Vijay met Tamil Nadu Governor RV Arlekar at Lok Bhavan after his party secured the majority mark to form the government. He completed 100 days as the CM of Tamil Nadu in August 17.
Rajinikanth’s response
On Tuesday (August 25), Rajinikanth was spotted arriving at the Hyderabad airport. As per a video shared on X, as Rajinikanth made his entrance, he faced a few reporters. When one of them asked him about the news of Vijay completing 100 days as the new CM of Tamil Nadu, Rajinikanth offered no comment. He smiled and went inside his car.
From raising Aavin’s milk procurement price and expanding maternity leave to announcing vehicles and allowances for MLAs and threatening to open “corruption files” against the previous DMK government, Vijay’s post-century phase has been anything but quiet.
Vijay also announced that all MLAs would get government vehicles and a ₹1 lakh monthly package, comprising ₹75,000 towards fuel, maintenance and driver expenses and ₹25,000 for an assistant for office work. The government said the move was intended to help legislators travel through their constituencies and take up development work.
The decision has already triggered criticism from the DMK, which argued that MLAs who already own vehicles should be excluded from the scheme.
Alongside the political and administrative announcements came a significant expansion of healthcare cover. The state’s chief minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme was expanded from ₹5 lakh to ₹25 lakh a year.
Rajinikanth hits back at trolls
Earlier at the title reveal of his upcoming film Dharman in June, Rajinikanth that these days, whatever he says publicly has become an issue. He said in Tamil, “The moment someone says they are calling me to speak, I feel hesitant. Because whenever I speak, it becomes a problem, either for you or for me.” He also pointed out that staying silent doesn’t help either, adding, “If I stay quiet, they will make fun of me saying, why isn’t he speaking? Has he kept a kozhukattai (a sweet delicacy) in his mouth?”
The Tamil star stated that it doesn’t matter what he does because people criticise him, stating, “If I speak, some will say, why did he speak now? Others will say he shouldn’t have spoken at all.” Rajinikanth then reflected on his decades of experience in the public eye and said, “After many years, I have understood one thing: people who don’t like us will not like us, no matter what we do. And thinking that people who like us will like everything we do, whatever we do, is foolish. One has to be careful.”
What did Rajinikanth say about Vijay?
Ever since Vijay won the Tamil Nadu elections, rumours circulated that Rajinikanth wasn’t happy with the outcome. To dispel these rumours, the star held a press conference at his home in Chennai and stated that he met former CM MK Stalin after the elections, as they are friends. He also addressed rumours that he was not happy for Vijay or did not wish him after the win. However, his statement seemed to have the opposite effect.