Chennai: In the climax of his 2002 flop ‘Baba’, Rajinikanth makes a last-minute return from sanyaas to socio-political life. On Tuesday, the actor made a virtual repeat of the theme, this time in reverse, going back on his promise to launch a political party.

“I regret to announce that I am not in position to launch a party and enter politics. Only I know the pain behind this announcement. This will come as a disappointment to those part of RMM (Rajini Makkal Mandram), my fans and people. Forgive me,” Rajinikanth said in a three-page statement. “Some people may ridicule me. But fearing them, I cannot sacrifice those who trust and travel with me,” he said.

Rajinikanth, who was shooting in Hyderabad for his latest movie last week, was hospitalised for three days with complaints of fluctuating blood pressure after four crew members tested positive for Coronavirus. He tested negative for the virus. Some of his fans regrouped in front of his Poes Garden residence to make a last ditch attempt to make Rajini reconsider his decision.

“Vaanga Thalaiva, Naanga Irukkom” (Come out, leader, we are here), one fan tweeted. “You do not worry. We will take care of the hard work,” said another. RSS ideologue and Tuglak editor S Gurumurthy termed Rajinikanth's decision as “inevitable”. He hoped Rajinikanth would still make an impact in the coming elections as he did in the 1996 assembly polls (when the actor had issued a statement against (Jayalalithaa), which the DMK-TMC alliance won with a majority.

In his statement, Rajinikanth said despite the advice from doctors not to venture out, he had travelled to Hyderabad to shoot for a film. “Due to severe fluctuations in blood pressure, I was in hospital and monitored for three days. Fluctuating blood pressure is harmful for my transplanted kidney. I considered it as a warning from God,” he said.