Actor Rajinikanth says, will not apologise for remark on Periyar rally amidst protest
Chennai, Jan 21: Days after a Dravidian outfit demanded an apology from him for his comments on a rally taken out by social reformer Periyar decades ago, Superstar Rajinikanth on Tuesday asserted that he will neither express regret nor tender an apology and maintained that his remark was factual.
Showing clippings from magazines and newspapers, the top actor said the idols of Lord Ram and Sita were taken out without dress and the deities also featured a garland of sandals in a rally led by late Periyar E V Ramasamy in 1971.
"A controversy has emerged that I said something that did not happen. But I did not say anything that did not occur. I only said what I heard and things that appeared in magazines.
Sorry, I will not express regret or apologise," he told reporters outside his Poes Garden residence.
Further, he said, "I did not say anything out of imagination or something that was not there. Lakshmanan (then Jan Sangh and now BJP leader) who took part in a dharna (in 1971) has corroborated it," he said.
On the 1971 rally -in which Hindu deities were allegedly taken out naked- the actor said such things that happened in the past should not be raked up again and again.
"It was not a thing that can be (easily) forgotten but a thing that must be forgotten," he quipped.
On January 14, taking part in an event held here by Tamil magazine 'Thuglak' Rajinikanth alleged: "In 1971, at Salem, Periyar took out a rally in which the undressed images of Lord Sri Ramachandra Murthy and Sita -with a garland of sandal- featured ...."
A Dravidian outfit, Dravidar Viduthalai Kazhagam, however, accused the actor of "uttering a blatant lie" and demanded his unconditional apology and also filed police complaints seeking action against him.
DVK alleged that the actor uttered a "blatant lie that the images of Lord Ram and Sita were taken nude in a rally, held as part of a superstition eradication conference held in 1971 at Salem."
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West Asia crisis: MEA establishes control room to assist Indians
New Delhi (PTI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has set up a control room to assist those affected by the escalating crisis in West Asia.
The MEA has said almost one crore Indian citizens live in West Asia and their safety and well-being is of "utmost priority" for New Delhi.
As the Iran-US conflict widened, the Indian embassy in Iran moved hundreds of Indian students from the Iranian capital of Tehran to safer locations.
"A Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region," the MEA said on Wednesday.
"The Control Room can be contacted from 9 am to 9 pm at: 1800118797 (Toll Free) +91 11 2301 2113, +91 11 2301 4104, +91 11 2301 7905," it added.
The US launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israel and American military bases in several Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
The MEA on Tuesday noted that almost one crore Indian citizens live and work in the Gulf region, and their "safety and well-being is of utmost priority."
"We cannot be impervious to any development that negatively affects them," it said.
The MEA said New Delhi will continue to closely monitor the evolving situation and take relevant decisions in the national interest, adding it is in touch with the governments in the region as well as other key partners.
A Special Control Room has been set up in the Ministry of External Affairs in view of the current situation in West Asia and the Gulf region. Details are as below ⬇️
— Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) March 4, 2026
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