On Sunday, Rajinikanth explicitly stated that if he had entered the electoral fray in 2001, he would have achieved 100% victory. His remark has triggered political analysis of 'What if'.
In 1996, Rajinikanth famously declared, "Even God cannot save Tamil Nadu if Jayalalithaa is voted back to power," which propelled the DMK-TMC (Tamil Maanila Congress) alliance to a historic landslide victory. However, Rajinikanth's words didn't carry much weight thereafter. Just two years later, in the 1998 general elections, the superstar extended his support to the same DMK-TMC combine. The political landscape had completely shifted by then. Jayalalithaa formed a powerful new coalition with the BJP, PMK, and MDMK. Combined with intense anti-incumbency against the state government, the DMK-TMC alliance collapsed, managing to win just 9 out of 39 seats (DMK won 5, TMC won 3, and an ally won 1). The remainder went heavily to the AIADMK-BJP front.
Fans of Thalapathy Vijay are criticizing Rajinikanth for claiming that he would definitely have come to power had he formed a party in 2001. On Sunday, the Jailer and Coolie actor also said that he didn't make any attempts to help the DMK and the AIADMK join forces after the recent hung verdict. He praised Vijay for successfully defeating the two Dravidian parties and the BJP.
