AIADMK Cuts Ties With BJP, Passes Resolution at Key Party Meet to Walk Out of NDA Ahead of 2024 Polls

In a big setback to the BJP ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the AIADMK on Monday announced officially to end all ties with the ruling party at the Centre and exiting the NDA.

The decision was taken during an AIADMK meeting chaired by General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami with key office-bearers, including the district secretaries and MLAs to discuss ties with the BJP. The party’s high-level meeting adopted a unanimous resolution criticising the BJP TN unit for deliberately attacking AIADMK icons and ideology.

“The state leadership of the BJP has been continuously making unnecessary remarks on our former leaders, our general secretary EPS and our cadres for the past one year. In today’s meeting, this resolution was passed unanimously,” said the AIADMK.

Celebrations took place outside AIADMK headquarters in Chennai following the party’s decision to sever ties with the BJP.

“BJP state unit does not have sanctity for us. It keeps on attacking our leaders. BJP high command has failed to take any action against Annamalai. BJP needs us more than we need them,” an AIADMK spokesperson told CNN-News18.

Speaking to ANI, AIADMK Spokesperson Kovai Sathyan said, “We never sought the meetings with Amit Shah (Union Home Minister) nor did he refuse. These are all wrong speculations”. He also said, “Whatever the decision of the General Secretary that is full and final and binding upon every cadre of AIADMK”.

An AIADMK delegation flew to the national capital on Friday and met BJP president J P Nadda and Union Minister Piyush Goyal, in charge of Tamil Nadu, asking for their intervention in making Annamalai apologise.

AIADMK Angry Over Annamalai’s Remarks

Following an argument over certain remarks by the BJP state chief K Annamalai against late Dravidian stalwart CN Annadurai, senior AIADMK leader D Jayakumar had called off the alliance between the two parties on September while claiming that Annamalai was conveying the party’s stand on the issue.

BJP Chief Annamalai Reacts to AIADMK breaking alliance with BJP and NDA

After AIADMK officially announced the breaking of ties with BJP and NDA, Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai told ANI, “I will speak to you later, I don’t speak during Yatra. I will speak later”.

Earlier, Jayakumar had also said that any decision regarding the coalition will be taken during polls. He further said that his party workers will not tolerate any insult to the late chief minister.

Jayakumar said that since Annamalai had made critical remarks about AIADMK leaders including the late J Jayalalithaa, the party had sought that the BJP leader be restrained.

“He is criticising Anna, Periyar and the General Secretary. No cadre would accept this. Tomorrow we have to work on the field. So without any option, we announced this. There won’t be any impact on us with this decision. We are confident of our victory,” he said.

Top BJP sources, had earlier said that any issues between AIADMK and the state party unit will be sorted out amicably.

WHAT HAPPENED IN 2019 LOK SABHA POLLS IN TAMIL NADU?

In 2019, the BJP was wiped out in Tamil Nadu and its partner AIADMK was decimated to only one seat. On the other hand, the DMK-Congress alliance won 30 (Congress 8 & DMK 24) out of 39 seats in the state.