September 20, 2025 07:28 PM IST
First published on: Sep 20, 2025 at 06:54 PM IST
Actor-turned-politician Vijay sharpened his attack on the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) Saturday, accusing the government of trying to throttle his fledgling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) through restrictions that he mocked as both authoritarian and absurd. Arriving in Tiruchi on a chartered flight in the morning, Vijay set out for Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur by suburban routes, skirting city limits under a heavy security presence.
Police and paramilitary personnel, citing precautionary measures, held back throngs of his supporters outside the airport gates. The detour allowed him to reach the coastal districts without disruption. In Nagapattinam, beginning his speech with a warm, “How are you everyone, have you all eaten?” before invoking Anna, Periyar, and the region’s fisherfolk, Vijay quickly turned to ridicule the DMK government’s alleged efforts to cramp his political rallies, which were wreaking havoc often due to unprecedented crowds.
“In Ariyalur, the moment I started speaking, they snapped the power,” he told the cheering crowd. “In Trichy, they cut the wires. CM sir, I am asking you— if an RSS leader, Modiji or the union Home Minister comes here, will you cut power like that? Try doing that. Your basement will shake, le (isn’t it)? Aren’t you secret friends?”
He said officials had issued instructions so petty that they bordered on slapstick: “I’m given too many restrictions. I’m told to remain inside the bus, do not step outside. Don’t raise my hands too high but only this much (animatedly)… Not to smile too much, or wave at you people. Oh my god! This is ‘semma (extreme) comedy’.” Then, asking Chief Minister M K Stalin, he added: “Are you threatening me? You got it wrong, this is Vijay. What will you do, max?”
Vijay contrasted what he called the arrogance of dynastic politics with his own hard-earned stature as an actor-turned-politician.
“One keeping an ideology as a banner and using the family to loot the entire state can have this much arrogance?” he said. “Then, one who worked hard and earned money like me, imagine how much arrogance I can have…”
The TVK founder cast himself as the representative of “unprecedented people power,” with women and young people at its core.
“I am not alone, sir. I am representing families, fishermen, women, and the youth,” he said. “If you put more conditions on my rallies, I will start asking permission directly from the people,” Vijay said, standing on top of the campaign vehicle that stood amid a cheering crowd — largely youngsters and including a sizeable number of women.
He reminded the audience of his earlier activism. “Fourteen years back, in February 2011, when fishermen protested, I was here. Back then it was Vijay Makkal Iyakkam, now it is TVK. I always stood with the people,” he said, stressing that his politics was no sudden reinvention.
The speech also drew battle lines clearly for the 2026 election. “Should this insecure DMK government come back to power? Or should TVK come to power?” he asked, to loud cries of “TVK!”
The government’s restrictions, he warned, had only steeled his resolve. “This war bugle is not going to let you sleep,” he declared. “Victory is for sure.”
