Amit Shah Hints National Role for K. Annamalai in BJP

Nainar Nagendran Replaces K. Annamalai as TN BJP Chief

By Amit Kumar

New Delhi, April 11, 2025: Union Minister for Home Affairs Amit Shah on Friday announced that Tamil Nadu chief of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) K. Annamalai will get a place in the Central unit of the party. Shah announced that the BJP MLA Nainar Nagendran is the new party president in Tamil Nadu.

During the press conference in Chennai, Shah praised Annamalai for his “unprecedented contribution” to the party’s growth in the state. Shah indicated that Annamalai’s efforts have been significant.

Shah in a post on X hinted at a potential national role for Annamalai. “Nainar Nagendran has been unanimously chosen as the new state BJP president,” said Shah in his post on X. He added that Nagendran was the only candidate in the election for the post of the president of the BJP in Tamil Nadu.

Media reports had stated that Annamalai would be replaced as part of a deal with the AIADMK. Annamalai had led campaigns in Tamil Nadu which were seen aimed at both the DMK and the AIADMK.

The BJP will be contesting the next year’s Assembly elections in an alliance with the AIADMK. Shah emphasized Annamalai’s success in carrying forward Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policies to the people of Tamil Nadu, underscoring “his commendable accomplishments during his tenure”.

During the leadership of Annamalai, the BJP vote share jumped to double digit in the Lok Sabha elections last year. But his aggression against the AIADMK is seen to have edged him out of the post of the chief of the BJP in Tamil Nadu.

The BJP is currently undertaking organisational elections. The BJP national president election is also likely in the next few weeks.

The BJP is likely to stitch a larger alliance in Tamil Nadu with the AIADMK in the lead position. Smaller outfits are also likely to be accommodated in the alliance.

Prime Minister set the narrative for the BJP to build the poll momentum by raising the issue of Tamil language. In his speech after the inauguration of the Pamban Bridge, Modi questioned why the DMK-led state government is not letting students in Tamil Nadu pursue education in the Tamil language.

The DMK is building a poll narrative against the BJP by stoking the plank of delimitation. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin recently held a conclave of the Opposition parties on delimitation.

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About The Author

amitkumar

Amit Kumar is a senior Delhi-based journalist with over two decades of reporting experience. His past has been with The Hindustan Times, Mid-Day, and others.

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