Annamalai May Step Down As Tamil Nadu BJP Chief As Alliance Talks With AIADMK Progresses: Report

As alliance talks between the BJP and AIADMK gain momentum, K Annamalai may step down as BJP Tamil Nadu president, with party insiders citing caste equations rather than a punitive measure, Indian Express reported exclusively.

The BJP does not want both its and AIADMK’s face in the 2026 state elections to be from the Gounder community, to which both Annamalai and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami belong.

According to BJP sources, Annamalai was informed of this strategy during his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi, shortly after Shah met Palaniswami, marking the first formal step towards a BJP-AIADMK reunion.

Despite his aggressive leadership style giving the BJP visibility in Tamil Nadu, Annamalai was assured that “Delhi sees a bright future for him.” The party leadership conveyed that it expects him to trust and follow the party’s strategy.

A senior BJP leader confirmed that Annamalai had pledged complete loyalty to the party. “He conveyed that he doesn’t have any second thoughts regarding his commitment to the party and is even ready to work as a mere cadre,” the leader said.

Another party insider noted, “Whether Annamalai exits from the state president’s post or not, he remains a key figure in the party’s long-term strategy for Tamil Nadu.”

Sources indicate that the frontrunner to replace Annamalai is BJP MLA Nainar Nagendran, a popular leader from Tirunelveli, who was earlier with the AIADMK.

Nagendran, from the Thevar community, could help expand the BJP’s reach beyond western Tamil Nadu into southern districts, where the AIADMK-BJP alliance needs to counter the DMK’s stronghold.

Speaking in Coimbatore, Annamalai refused to comment on the AIADMK-BJP alliance, stating, “Union Home Minister Amit Shah spoke about it recently at a function. You can take that as the final view (of the party).”

Annamalai stressed that his focus was the BJP’s long-term growth in Tamil Nadu, asserting, “I did not come to politics for power, I came to make a change in Tamil Nadu politics.”

About the Palaniswami-Shah meeting, Annamalai said, “There was nothing wrong in it. There is no need for BJP leaders to meet any party leader discreetly.”

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