Kamal takes on money power, but is it political?

Veteran actor Kamal Haasan has caused a flutter by warning voters not to succumb to money power in the elections. `If you sell your votes then you will have to accept your fate,“ he said. This is not the first time he has taken a stand on a key issue, but what makes it significant is the political undertones. It comes barely two weeks before the Tamil Nadu assembly election.While some analysts prefer to read it as a criticism of the ruling party, others feel the actor, without taking sides, was appealing out of concern over reports of inducements offered to voters.
Kamal Haasan, speaking to a news channel on Friday , went on to add, “You lose the moral right to question politicians. Nothing can be more pathetic than selling your vote.“ In TN where cinema and politics are intertwined, statements by actors have generated debate in the past. One instance was 1996 -Rajinikanth's statement that `even God can't save Tamil Nadu if you vote for Jayalalithaa“ is believed to have helped the DMK-TMC combine sweep the polls. Political analyst M Kasinathan said Rajnikanth's statement was a direct attack on Jayalalithaa, but Kamal's statement was no less than a broad hint.
“People will definitely start having doubts about the party in power with such statements,“ he said. “It can influence young voters and fans of the actor,“ he said.
Reports about money being seized from touts and middlemen linked to ruling party members were worrying, said senior UN official R Kannan, who now represents DMK.“Although there is no mention about which party he meant, the statement gives a clear and positive message to people,“ said Kannan. “The situation is so dire that an apolitical yet concerned and much respected citizen with a huge fan following like Kamal Haasan has felt the need to warn people about falling prey to such short term gains,“ he said.
If the inference is accurate, this would not be Kamal's first face-off with the AIADMK regime. In 2013, his film Vishwaroopam was released after a prolonged tussle with the state government. In the wake of the December floods, he was critical of flood relief measures. He said, “The entire system has collapsed.Where is all the taxpayer's money going? I don't take black money . I pay taxes. What is being done for me and my people with my hard-earned money?“ Calling the actor a `loose cannon', finance minister O Panneerselvam had hit back saying the actor was not in his senses. Kamal then retracted his statement.
However, given the fact that most regional parties have a record of bribery in polls, can Kamal's latest salvo help the voter make up his mind?