1 week Ago By Sentinel Digital Desk
: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday formally announced that the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) will lead the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in , setting the stage for a joint campaign in the 2026 Assembly elections. Addressing a press conference in Chennai, HM Shah described the AIADMK-BJP alliance as a “natural partnership” and confirmed that Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS), AIADMK’s general secretary, will be the NDA’s chief ministerial candidate in the state.
The declaration marks a significant political shift and revives a partnership that had collapsed in September 2023 following a bitter fallout. The split was largely triggered by controversial remarks made by Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai, which offended the AIADMK leadership.
His comments about revered Dravidian leaders like C.N. Annadurai and J.
Jayalalithaa had sparked outrage within the AIADMK and led to a public rift between the two parties. The two parties had previously contested together in the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Assembly elections. In the 2021 polls, the BJP won four seats while the secured 66.
However, relations soured after Annamalai’s appointment as state BJP chief, ultimately leading to the alliance’s breakdown ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The split proved costly, as both parties suffered significant setbacks in the 2024 polls. HM Shah arrived in Chennai in the early hours of Friday and was received at the airport by key BJP leaders, including state president K.
Annamalai, Union Minister of State L. Murugan, and senior figures Tamilisai Soundararajan, Nainar Nagendran, and Pon Radhakrishnan. During his visit, HM Shah held crucial discussions with senior BJP and RSS leaders, including a private meeting with S.
Gurumurthy, editor of Thuglak magazine and an influential RSS ideologue. (IANS) Also Read: Also watch:.
