Actor-politician Kamal Haasan made his parliamentary debut as he took oath as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha in Tamil on Friday.
Speaking ahead of the swearing-in, he said, “I’m going to swear-in and register my name. As an Indian, I will do my duty.”
Kamal Haasan was elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha in June, with the support of the DMK-led alliance.
After his party, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM), joined the DMK-led bloc ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Haasan was offered the choice between contesting a Lok Sabha seat or accepting a Rajya Sabha nomination. He chose the latter, even though his party extended full support to the DMK-Congress alliance during the general elections.
Interestingly, Kamal Haasan had launched the MNM in 2018 as a non-Dravidian alternative to both the DMK and AIADMK. But in recent years, he had softened his stand and allied with the DMK, stating the shift was in “national interest rather than personal political gain.”
Earlier this year, at MNM’s eighth founding day celebrations in Chennai, Haasan had dropped hints about his Parliament debut. “This year, our voice will be heard in Parliament. Next year, your voice will be heard in the State Assembly,” he said.