Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagendran expressed regret over his derogatory remark on Monday. This comes after Trisha called him out in a strongly worded statement for dragging her into an attack on actor-turned-politician Vijay. The 65-year-old politician said that the comment was made `by mistake`.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagendran apologises
Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagendran said, “This was a statement made by mistake. Our all India women`s wing chief Vanathi Srinivasan and Annamalai has spoken to me about this matter. If anyone has been hurt by my statement, I express my heartfelt regrets.”
The apology follows a political row stirred by the politician. During an address, he suggested that Vijay should “come out of Trisha’s house” to gain experience and succeed in politics. The remark was made while responding to Vijay’s earlier claim that his party, TVK, would emerge as a key challenger in the upcoming Assembly elections.
At an event, Nagendran mocked Vijay’s political ambitions, saying the actor was someone “who cannot even climb onto a rooftop is dreaming of climbing to heaven”. “Poor man, he is completely inexperienced. First, he needs to come out of his house. Come out of Trisha’s house first, then something can happen,” he had said.
Trisha slammed his remarks
Following the statement, Trisha condemned the comment and asserted her political neutrality through her legal advisor. “My client never expected that such a distasteful and inappropriate remark would be made by a person holding a high stature in the State`s political space,” the statement said. If further added that she wished to be defined only by her work and that her name should not be dragged into matters unrelated to her.
Nagendran`s remark also drew sharp criticism from several political leaders, who called it inappropriate, accusing the BJP of making personal attacks. Leaders of the ruling DMK alleged that such comments showed a lack of respect for women. On the other hand, the Congress also questioned why the actor’s name was being brought into political matters.
Despite standing by his words and refusing to withdraw them initially, Nagendran said he regretted the statement if it had hurt anyone, on Monday.
