Accusing the DMK of no longer being a party for Tamils and that there was no place in the party for “committed and true workers”, DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva’s son Suriya Siva joined the BJP. He switched parties in the presence of BJP state president K Annamalai.

He also stated that he did not join the party for any post. While joining BJP on Sunday, May 8, Suriya told The Hindu that DMK’s strength was its cadre who are committed to the party and said the party did not care about them. “I have worked tirelessly for more than 15 years to strengthen the party from the grassroots level. But there is no recognition,” he said and added that only newcomers who switched several parties and had financial resources were “being recognised”. “I feel that, irrespective of caste and community, every person is given due recognition in BJP and has a bright future in state politics,” he said.

He further added that he had a ‘strained relationship’ with his father since his marriage. In 2013, he married a Christian woman and had alleged that his father was trying to separate him and his wife. However, he made the allegations in 2017 that his father was ‘indirectly’ trying to separate the couple. “He is intimidating my wife and her mother with consequences,” he had said, in response to which Tiruchi Siva had refuted the allegations.

“My father feels my inter-religious marriage would affect his political career. I was unable to take the issue neither to the notice of the DMK leader M Karunanidhi nor to the working president MK Stalin due to his influence,” Suriya had alleged in 2017. However, Tiruchi Siva told the Times of India at the time that he was “worried about Suriya’s future and life” and that he did not threaten them but was concerned about their “age difference”. Meanwhile, Suriya claimed that their age difference was only a couple of years, and that did not disturb his father, but her religion did.