Southern superstar Rajinikanth on Sunday said that he had once hurt J Jayalalithaa, who passed away on December 5, and that his political speech led to Amma’s AIADMK losing the poll battle in 1996.
Rajinikanth was speaking at a condolence meet for the late former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister organised by the Nadigar Sangam (South Indian Artists' Association) on December 11.
“Jayalalithaa lost elections in 1996 because of me. I had hurt her,” Rajinikanth said at the event.
The superstar had said “even God can’t save Tamil Nadu if Jayalalithaa’s party AIADMK voted to power”. The DMK won that election by a landslide, while the AIADMK managed to secure only four seats.
However, Rajinikanth described Jayalalithaa as a lady with a golden heart. He said that when he invited her to his daughter Aishwarya’s wedding, she graciously accepted it and participated despite the troubled relationship.
"I sought an appointment to invite her for my daughter's wedding with a heavy heart. I thought she would not want to come. But I got an appointment," he said.
“Amma saw the invitation and said that the same day there was the wedding of one of her party members. But she said that she will ask her party member to postpone his wedding and surely come to my daughter’s wedding,” he added.
Jayalalitha breathed her last at the Apollo Hospitals in Chennai on December 5 after an uncertainty filled 75 days in hospital during which she remained extremely unwell.
Jayalalithaa, who was admitted to hospital on September 22 with complaints of fever and dehydration, suffered a cardiac arrest on December 4 evening.
On December 5, Jayalalithaa continued to be very critical and was on extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) and life support systems.
According to a release by the hospital, she passed away at 11:30 pm on Dec 5.
