As BJP weighs caste equations, Annamalai says not seeking to continue as Tamil Nadu chief

The Indian Express had reported earlier that the BJP may urge Annamalai to step down once the alliance was sealed as both he and AIADMK chief E Palaniswami belong to the same powerful community of the Gounders.

Annamalai sought to later play down his remarks, saying there was no question of a contest for leaders. “We (the BJP) don’t select leaders by choosing between 50 candidates. Everyone together will select one leader, acting unanimously.”

Two years after the AIADMK ended its alliance with the BJP, partly due to the constant attacks by Annamalai against the AIADMK, Palaniswami met Union Home Minister Amit Shah recently in Delhi. Sources said the fact that leaders at the highest levels were now talking meant that an alliance was more or less finalised, well in time for the 2026 Assembly elections.

The Gounders, the community to which both Annamalai and Palaniswami belong, are dominant in western Tamil Nadu, and the BJP is looking to diversify the alliance’s leadership base to attract as many votes as possible. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the party had shown impressive gains though it had failed to win a seat in Tamil Nadu.

“If the AIADMK-BJP alliance is sealed, leaders of both parties in the state cannot be from the same community and region,” a BJP source had told The Indian Express earlier this week.

The frontrunner to replace Annamalai is said to be Nainar Nagendran, a BJP MLA and former AIADMK leader from Tirunelveli, who belongs to another influential community, the Thevars.

While he may step down as Tamil Nadu chief, Annamalai, whose aggressive stance has put the BJP at the heart of the state politics, would continue to play an important role in the party. “I came to politics to fight corruption. I will continue my fight to bring the BJP power to Tamil Nadu,” he said Friday. “The 2026 polls are crucial for Tamil Nadu.”