Former IPS officer K Annamalai was appointed vice president of the Tamil Nadu BJP unit on Saturday. The bureaucrat-turned-politician formally joined the Tamil Nadu BJP unit in the presence of BJP national general secretary P Muralidhar Rao and state president L Murugan in New Delhi on August 25.
On Saturday, a press release from Tamil Nadu BJP state president L Murugan said, “Former IPS officer Annamalai is appointed as the vice president of Tamil Nadu BJP state unit. I wish you success for future endeavours.”
Shortly after he joined the party, however, Annamalai was booked under the Epidemic Diseases Act on charges of unlawful assembly, along with other office-bearers, by the Coimbatore city police. A grand welcome for the new politician was staged at the party’s office in Siddhapudur.
Annamalai’s appointment as senior office-bearer in the party comes months ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu. The party, which is currently in alliance with the AIADMK government and has no sitting lawmakers, is hoping to revive its prospects in the state.
Recently, former DMK deputy general secretary, VP Duraisamy, too was appointed vice president in the party after he jumped ship to the national party in July. Seen as the party’s strategy to endear itself to new-comers, however, this led to internal disgruntlement. Former state minister Nainar Nagendran who joined the BJP after the demise of former Chief Minister and AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa in December 2016 said he was sidelined and appointed just one of 10 vice presidents in the state unit.
Annamalai is expected to work for the BJP in Chennai and Coimbatore ahead of the state polls.
The 2011 batch IPS officer came into prominence while being posted in Karnataka’s Udupi for tough action on criminal activities. In 2016, he was transferred from Udupi and posted as Superintendent of Police in Chikkamagaluru district.
However, IPS officer of the Karnataka cadre quit the police service in May 2019 to work in agriculture and education sectors in his native Karur district.
Initially, there were rumours that he would join actor-politician Rajinikanth’s yet-to-be-launched party. However, putting an end to speculations, he decided to join the BJP.