Days after being appointed as the election in-charge for six assembly constituencies in Tamil Nadu BJP’s former state president K.Annamalai threw a surprise to his own party men by choosing to quit his position. Annamalai’s decision to quit as the election in-charge comes at a time when the BJP is aiming to contest from the maximum number of seats in alliance with the AIADMK.
While Annamalai gave reasons for his decision saying that he has to attend to his father’s health by being next to him in Coimbatore, sources have it that Annamalai was upset with the present BJP leadership for confining him to just six constituencies and was also unwilling to work under the AIADMK. Incidentally, Annamalai has been feeling sidelined ever since Nainar Nagendran replaced him as the state president. While he was completely kept in the dark during the alliance talks with the AIADMK, he was brought back to strategise to rope in TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK into the NDA. The central leadership brought in Annamalai to convince Dhinakaran way back in December. And now after the alliance equations with Dhinakaran have been finalised, he is said to be feeling left out by the central and the state leadership of the party.
Sources also say that Annamalai who had toured the entire state during his En Mann, En Makkal yatra during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and increased the BJP’s vote share in Tamil Nadu was being sidelined in all the party events in the state. Also he was upset with the state leadership having a soft approach towards the AIADMK. Annamalai’s prominence was completely absent in the past six months in the state BJP and he kept away from participating in the events organised by the state unit. However, he was present when home minister Amit Shah or Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Chennai or elsewhere in Tamil Nadu.
As a leader who took on both the DMK and the AIADMK in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he was upset with the state leadership for confining him to just six assembly segments, according to sources. “He is a leader who ensured BJP’s rise in Tamil Nadu. Confining him to six seats is not fair,” a senior BJP leader and a staunch fan of Annamalai told THE WEEK. He was appointed as the election in-charge of the BJP for Karaikudi, Srivaikuntam, Virugambakkam, Singanallur, Madurai (South) and Padmanabapuram constituencies. Incidentally, all the six assembly segments are in different zones with no connection to each other. While Karaikudi is south, Srivaikuntam and Padmanabapuram are deep south, Virugambakkam is in Chennai, Singanallur in West Tamil Nadu and Madurai (South) is a DMK fiefdom.
“I have conveyed to the High Command that I won’t be able to carry out my responsibilities. My father is unwell and I have to tend to him. That is my first priority. I won’t be able to travel much. And so you will see me often in Coimbatore,” he told the media in Coimbatore.
Annamalai was expected to campaign for the NDA alliance across the state. But if his equation with Palaniswami doesn’t turn smooth and if the present BJP leadership doesn’t encourage him, he might stop just by campaigning for the AMMK candidates. Sources say that Annamalai is unlikely to contest in the upcoming elections. During the press conference on Tuesday, he was asked if he will contest the elections. He responded, saying, “I will first talk to the leadership before taking a decision.”