The DMK has allocated a Rajya Sabha seat to Makkal Nidhi Myam (MNM) as well as its founder and actor Kamal Haasan has been nominated for the upper house of Parliament.
Makkal Nidhi Mayyam (MNM) leader Murali Appas said, “We have passed a proposal to choose Kamal Haasan as a Rajya Sabha member from Makkal Nidhi Mayyam Party.”
In addition, the ruling DMK alliance has announced the names of its three candidates for the Rajya Sabha election to be held on June 19 this year. According to a DMK release, Salma, Advocate P Wilson and SR Shivalingam are its candidates.
In the 234 -member Tamil Nadu Assembly, each candidate requires at least 34 votes to win the Rajya Sabha seat.
The India block led by DMK with 158 MLAs (DMK: 133, Congress: 17, 4, CPM: 2) is in a position to win four seats comfortably.
Actor Kamal Haasan started Makkal Nidhi Miam at a public meeting in Madurai in 2018. Makkal Nidhi Miam did not participate in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, but campaigned for the DMK -led India block in the state. In turn, the DMK promised a Rajya Sabha seat for the party.
Makkal Nidhi Miam had secured 2.62% votes in the 2021 state assembly elections. Meanwhile, Kamal Haasan has created a political controversy with his alleged remarks, claiming that “Kannada’s roots are in Tamil.”
In a post written in strict words on X, Karnataka BJP state president Vijayendra Yeddyurappa demanded an unconditional apology from Haasan and accused him of acting in Kannada films and showing his generosity, and accused him of showing ego and ungrateful attitude towards the Kannada community.
The BJP MLA from Shikaripura said, “Somebody should love his mother tongue, but to show disrespect in his name is an incomplete behavior. Especially the artists should have a culture of respecting every language. It is the culmination of ego that an actor Kamal Haasan, who has acted in many Indian languages including Kannada, has insulted Kannada by involving actor Shivrajkumar in Tamil language glory.”
Emphasizing the historical importance of Kannada, he said that this language has been a “major language” and is greatly respected in many regions around the world.
Yeddyurappa said, “Kannada has been a major language in many parts of the world including India for centuries. The fact that Kannada is the most respected language in the world, people with narrow thinking should be known. Kamal Haasan, who has also worked in Kannada films before insulting Kannada, has forgotten the generosity of Kannada and Kannad people.”
