Lanka president Mahinda Rajapaksa with Salman Khan and Jacqueline Fernandez. (AFP Photo)

Chennai: Hitting out at Bollywood actor Salman Khan for allegedly campaigning for Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, MDMK chief Vaiko on Monday dubbed him as a ‘betrayer.’

“He is also a betrayer,” Vaiko told reporters here when asked about this.

Earlier, reports had suggested that the Indian superstar, along with actor Jacqueline Fernandez, had been roped in to campaign for the Lankan leader, who is testing his electoral fortunes for a third time in the coming Presidential elections, due next month in the island republic.

Rajapaksa is under fire from political parties in Tamil Nadu, especially MDMK, as he was at the helm of affairs in 2009 when civilian casualties in the Tamil-dominated areas in Sri Lanka’s northeast reportedly peaked during the last leg of the war between Lankan army and LTTE.

Khan is not the only Indian influence in the Rajapaksa campaign. It has been reported that Arvind Gupta, a BJP social media guru, is helping the incumbent in the social media side of the campaign.

The presidential election will take place on January 8 as Rajapaksa called the election two years ahead of schedule in an apparent attempt to seek fresh mandate before his party’s popularity tumbles further, after dropping over 21% in September local elections.

(PTI)