Superstar Rajinikanth has landed in trouble as he has been summoned by the judicial commission probing the police firing during the anti-Sterlite protest in 2018 to help with the investigation, over a remark that was seen to justify police use of excessive force on protesters. The commission has summoned him to appear in person on January 19, 2021.
Mirroring the line of Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK government, Rajinikanth had blamed anti-social elements for the deaths and asked the state government to “come down hard” on them. His statement did not go down well with the locals, who had accused the police of attacking protesters and torching vehicles to create a situation to open fire.
When asked why he was blaming anti-socials, Rajinikanth had lost his cool. “Don’t ask me how I know, I know all of that,” he had told reporters. “If people go out and start protests for everything, then entire Tamil Nadu will become a graveyard,” said the actor, who had announced his intention to join politics shortly before.
As his statement set off a huge controversy, the actor had expressed regret. “I regret if I had hurt anyone,” he had said, without explaining or withdrawing the “anti-social” remark.
