Blamed for BJP’s loss in Tamil Nadu, Annamalai faces dissent
Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) state president, K Annamalai, found himself under fire after the dismal show of the party in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Senior BJP leader Kalyana Raman laid the blame firmly on Annamalai, saying he had deceived the BJP’s high command on the party’s growth in Tamil Nadu. He further called Annamalai a “pathological liar.” BJP failed to win any seats in Tamil Nadu, with Annamalai, who had contested in Coimbatore, losing to Ganapathy Rajkumar of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), by a margin of 1.14 lakh votes.
The statement comes a day after former Telangana governor and senior BJP leader Tamilisai Soundarajan, at a press conference in Chennai, warned the IT outfits of both the BJP and the opposition parties to refrain from tarnishing the image of senior party leaders. Tamilisai alleged that the DMK’s IT wing had referred to her derogatorily as “parattai,’ which is a pejorative description of coarse or wiry hair, often used to discriminate based on class, caste and racialised concepts of ‘ideal hair.’ She added that stern disciplinary action would be taken against those who tried to portray party leaders in the “wrong way,” including those from the BJP.
After the party’s defeat, Annamalai told the media that the BJP had grown its vote share in the state and that the people had shown that the party was moving in the right direction. He said the party would work twice as hard to win the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
Kalyana Raman, who posted on X, noted that the party’s vote share had reduced in 2024 compared to 2014—both times when the party had not allied with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). “5.56% (BJP’s vote share in 2014) was by contesting 9 seats and 11.24% (BJP’s vote share in 2024) was by contesting 23 seats. In other words, on a pro-rata basis, BJP should have got about 14.25% to equalise its 2014 performance,” he said. He further claimed that the BJP had only lost its deposit in two seats in 2014 as against 11 seats in 2024. “Huge loss of face before common man and bad perception management and pathetic political misadventure,” he commented.
Criticising Annamalai’s poll performance from the Coimbatore Lok Sabha seat, he said that CP Radhakrishnan, the present Governor of Jharkhand, had lost by 43,000 votes when he contested the seat in 2014 but that Annamalai had lost by three times the victory margin in 2024.
He further blamed Annamalai for curtailing the growth of seniors like Pon Radhakrishnan and Tamilisai Soundararajan in the party. He said that all the decision-making powers have been held by Annamalai and his “war room thugs.”
“Annamalai managed to build an ecosystem in Delhi that will protect and insulate him. Somewhere justice should prevail for all the souls who have done their best to grow the party like @PonnaarrBJP, @HRajaBJP @CPRGuv @DrTamilisai4BJP L Ganesan and a host of others,” he said on Friday, June 7. Kalyana Raman went on to state that when West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee visited L Ganesan’s family for an event, Annamalai was angry and that he had sent thugs to “attack” him.
He also stated that when a party worker Dhaya Sanker from Tirunelveli was arrested by the police for fighting against the slaughtering of cows, Annamalai had refused to help. Kalyana Raman said that he was sitting across from Annamalai when they were informed of the arrest and that Annamalai had said Dhaya should languish in jail for trying to become a leader. “Point is simple... Annamalai never wanted anyone fresh to emerge, and he also wanted to finish all who mattered,” Kalyana Raman wrote.
While voices of dissent are growing in Tamil Nadu against Annamalai, he has been asked to visit Delhi. Speculation is rife that Annamalai may be accommodated as a Minister of state in Modi's 3.0 council of ministers as reported by TNM in Powertrip on May 28 on the BJP.
Sources close to Annamalai said he is reluctant to accept the offer for a ministership at the Union level and wants to continue as state BJP president. But the party leadership is keen on inducting him into the cabinet. “Annamalai is hoping that the party leadership will consider his special request to allow him to continue as BJP state president while holding a ministerial post like Kishan Reddy,” the source said.
Top sources in the BJP told TNM that a day after the Lok Sabha election results, Annamalai was preparing to resign from the president’s post, taking moral responsibility for the dismal performance of the BJP-led NDA alliance in Tamil Nadu. “The party office bearers were asked to ensure full attendance for the meeting like Devendra Fadnavis. Annamalai too was supposed to announce his resignation, but he was persuaded by the seniors to reconsider his decision,” the source added.
Sources also add that the opinion regarding Annamalai and the way he is running the affairs of the party is divided among the BJP’s central leadership. “A section of top BJP leaders including BJP president JP Nadda and Amit Shah were upset with Annamalai for breaking ties with the AIADMK. But he enjoys the support of the Prime Minister. The PM believed that Annamalai would make a difference in Tamil Nadu.”
Speaking at the NDA alliance meeting on Friday, June 7, PM-designate Narendra Modi congratulated the ‘Tamil Nadu team’ for putting up a spirited fight and appreciated the efforts of NDA allies too. “Even though we're not able to win any seats in Tamil Nadu, the fast pace in which our NDA vote share has grown gives a clear message about what is expected in the future,” he added,
The Tamil Nadu BJP leaders see this as a clear indication that the BJP central leadership is not going to give up on Annamalai anytime soon. However, the local leadership has a different view. Speaking to TNM, a local party functionary said, “If the BJP high command is keen on setting things right in Tamil Nadu ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections and bringing back AIADMK into the alliance, they have to take a call on Annamalai’s continuation as state president.”