Former Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao offered CM post to Superstar Rajinikanth in 1996. Then the PM had called up Rajini and told him to contest state elections on behalf of Congress. He assured him that he would be made the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu if the party won the elections. The PM was confident that Congress party would capture power in the state if Rajini accepted to contest election on behalf of the party.
The sensational news is revealed in biography on Superstar (The Name is Rajinikanth), written by Dr. Gayatri Sreekanth. The book gives detailed sketch of the developments that took place in the politically turbulent 1996.
Rajini, who politely turned down the offer, had, according to the book, suggested the senior Congress leader G.K. Moopanar's name for the post. He also suggested that it would benefit the state if Congress aligned with DMK rather than AIADMK.
Rao, however, did not accept the suggestion. He decided to go with AIADMK and the state Congress witnessed a major split following the development. The rebel group led by Moopanar aligned with DMK and the alliance, which got the support of the Superstar, swept the polls.
Rajini, who gave up the thrown, had finally emerged as a kingmaker.
While everyone knows about the split and the developments that followed the split, few would have known about the offer made by the PM to our Superstar. By declining the offer, Rajini has proved writer cum Journalist Cho Ramaswamy's words ' 'Rajini is a saint at heart' ' uttered in the launch function that took place last week.
The year 1996 has proved to be a landmark in Rajini's life. The speculations on Rajini's entry into politics started in this year and it has ceased to vanish till the date.