Chennai: Actor-turned-politician and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) chief, Kamal Haasan, today said his party has emerged to be the third front in Tamil Nadu, the state where elections are due in May 2021.
Confirming that he would contest the assembly elections and that his party had named him Chief Ministerial candidate, he cited "honesty" as his party's strategy and that it would ally only "with good people".
Saying that this was not the time to speak about an alliance Kamal said, "Ours is not vendetta politics but politics of direction or guidance. I've never been a B team but always the A team."
Responding to a question if he would seek the support of superstar Rajinikant who had hinted at a rethink of his political plunge citing health conditions following renal transplant, Kamal Haasan said he can't force his friend towards a decision but added "Rajinikanth's health is important".
When asked about the recent row over Manusmriti and the following confrontation between the BJP and VCK party, the veteran actor said the ancient Hindu text was not in practise anymore so one needn't comment on it
Though Kamal Haasan's MNM had drawn a blank in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, it had secured close to 4% votes. The party is hoping it would get a larger share in the assembly elections.
Kamal Haasan listed "livelihood, jobs, and drinking water", among others, as the key poll issues.
This is the first state polls following the death of the two icons of Tamil Nadu politics, M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa. It would also be the MNM's first state election since its founding in February 2018.