AIADMK’s D Jayakumar targets Vijay with Vadivelu jibe, calls TVK ‘Whistle seeking help’

CHENNAI: AIADMK organising secretary D Jayakumar on Tuesday lashed out at TVK leader Vijay, accusing the actor‑turned‑politician of lacking leadership qualities.

He mocked Vijay by invoking comedian Vadivelu’s popular punchline - “Naanum Rowdy Thaan” - suggesting that the TVK chief was attempting to project his fledgling outfit as the primary opposition to the DMK in the upcoming assembly polls. Jayakumar also described TVK’s whistle symbol as a “sign of danger.”

Speaking to reporters after paying floral tributes to Dravidian icon and former chief minister C N Annadurai on his 57th death anniversary, Jayakumar criticised Vijay for dancing at TVK’s third‑anniversary event, despite the death of 41 people in the Karur roadshow stampede.

He wondered whether the actor spoke anything about the ill-fated incident. “If the families of the Karur victims see him dancing, how would they feel?” he asked, reiterating that Vijay lacked the maturity expected of a political leader.

Reasserting that the real contest remains between the DMK and AIADMK, Jayakumar said Vijay was attempting to create a false narrative by placing TVK as the principal challenger. To drive home his point, he recalled a well‑known comedy sequence in which Vadivelu voluntarily enters a police van while repeating “Naanum Rowdy Thaan (I am also a Rowdy).” “Vijay’s claim is no different,” he said, with a faint, sarcastic smile.

Jayakumar further ridiculed TVK’s whistle symbol, likening it to a distress call. Drawing a parallel with the Hollywood film Titanic, he said, “Just as the heroine blows a whistle at the end seeking help, TVK too is blowing the whistle - seeking alliance partners,” he quipped.