Ahead of the assembly elections in 2026, Tamil Nadu is witnessing re-alignment of political forces. In a state that is considered a fortress of Dravidian ideology, the BJP is trying hard to make inroads by reviving its alliance with the AIADMK. Nearly two years after the break-up, the two parties have buried the hatchet and announced their poll tie-up.
The BJP is keen to replicate the Andhra Pradesh model in TN. In AP, which went to polls last year, the saffron party roped in the Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) into the NDA fold, along with the actor-turned politician Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Party. The combination clicked and the alliance swept the elections.
In Tamil Nadu, too, the BJP is ready to play a junior partner to AIADMK in the fight to dislodge the DMK-led alliance from power. The party is also hopeful that the political entry of Tamil superstar Vijay — popularly called “Thalapathy” (Commander) by his countless fans — will lead to a split in the traditional DMK votes and benefit the AIADMK-led alliance.
Challenger to DMK
There are reasons for this optimism. In a state where tinsel glamour and politics are inexorably linked to each other, Vijay has ticked all the boxes. With the key stalwarts of the Dravidian stable —M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa — being out of picture, there is a political vacuum waiting to be filled.
Though Chief Minister MK Stalin has positioned himself as the sole inheritor of the Dravidian legacy, a sense of fatigue is expected to set in among the voters looking for a new political hero. Vijay is a new phenomenon to be tested in the coming elections. A blend of Dravidian ideology, Tamil nationalism, secularism and social justice form the core of his brand of politics.
Interestingly, Vijay’s party Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK) has positioned itself as a main challenger to the DMK and accused the ruling party of falsely parading its social justice credentials to perpetuate its dominance and loot the state. The immediate challenge before him is to convert his vast network of fan clubs into a structured political organisation to become battle-ready before the assembly elections.
Annamalai’s exit
The revival of the BJP-AIADMK alliance came at a cost. The charismatic state BJP chief K Annamalai, a strong critic of the Dravidian parties of all hues who advocated a solo journey for his party, had to sacrifice his post. Since he was opposed to alliance with the AIADMK, the central leadership replaced him with Nainar Nagendran as the state party president.
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Annamalai, an IPS officer-turned-politician, is known to have impressed many people with his oratory skills, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He is likely to be given a role at national level. There is speculation that he could be made the party’s national vice-president or general secretary and could eventually be inducted into the central cabinet.
Though his prescription for BJP’s growth in Tamil Nadu doesn’t fit into the party leadership’s current thinking, he is widely seen as an asset for the party’s future.
The BJP could significantly expand its footprint in the state with Annamalai at the helm. Its vote share rose from just over 3 per cent in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls to over 11 per cent in last year’s polls. The AIADMK had garnered 20 per cent vote share in the last elections. It was widely felt in the BJP circles that if the two parties had fought the elections together, they could have bagged a significant number of seats.
Clearly, political pragmatism guided the two parties to come together and forge an alliance. Union Home Minister Amit Shah made a categorical announcement that AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) will lead the NDA in Tamil Nadu.
In fact, both the national parties—Congress and BJP—are made to play second fiddle to formidable regional parties in Tamil Nadu in order to stay relevant.
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