BJP-AIADMK Tie-Up Will Stall Stalin's Show

Chennai: Newly elected BJP Tamil Nadu President Nainar Nagendran has said the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would unseat the ruling DMK in the 2026 state Assembly elections.

In a post on X on Sunday, Nagendran responded to critics who described the BJP-AIADMK alliance as “incompatible”, stating, “This alliance is indeed incompatible — but only for the DMK. It is this alliance that will bring an end to the exploitative regime of @mkstalin, which has burdened the people of Tamil Nadu. This alliance will uproot a government that has appointed those who disrespected the dignity of Tamil Nadu’s women as ministers.”

He added, “Don’t panic, Stalin. You still have one year left in office. But no one can change the verdict the people are going to deliver.”

Nagendran’s remarks came a day after his formal election as the BJP’s Tamil Nadu unit president on Saturday. The announcement was made during a party meeting in Chennai, where Union Minister G Kishan Reddy and BJP National General Secretary Tarun Chugh declared him duly elected. Outgoing president K. Annamalai, in his address, stated that the party’s goal was clear - to “dislodge the evil shakti” of the DMK and return good governance to the state.

Referring to the BJP’s renewed alliance with the AIADMK, Annamalai said, “The path is now clear, and the choice of Nagendran was unanimous.” Nagendran’s elevation comes at a politically significant juncture as the BJP and AIADMK draw closer ahead of the 2026 polls.

A seasoned political figure, the 64-year-old leader began his career with the AIADMK and was first elected to the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Tirunelveli in 2001. He served as Minister for Transport, Industries, and Electricity in the Jayalalithaa-led government between 2001 and 2006.

Though re-elected in 2011, he was not inducted into the Cabinet and narrowly lost the Tirunelveli seat in both 2006 and 2016.