NEW DELHI: Former Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai was not included in the party’s list of 27 candidates released on Friday for the upcoming assembly elections.When asked about the move, state president Nainar Nagendra said the “decision was taken by the party high command.”
The development comes days after differences between Annamalai and the party surfaced, following his absence at Coimbatore airport during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit.However, just hours after the names of the candidates were announced, Annamalai said that he will stand shoulder to shoulder for all the candidates with aim of the NDA winning 210 seats in the upcoming assembly elections.“Hearty congratulations to all the BJP winning candidates announced for the 2026 Tamil Nadu assembly elections. They carry the support of every brother & sister of TN who is tired of corruption, complacency, and the DMK’s betrayal,” Annamalai said.“I as a Karyakarta will stand shoulder to shoulder & campaign for all our winning BJP & other NDA candidates, with the aim of the NDA winning 210 seats in the upcoming assembly elections,” he added.Why Anamalai was pushed to the marginAlmost a year before the assembly elections, BJP had removed Annamalai as state president, a decision widely viewed as aimed at reviving ties with the AIADMK led by Edappadi K Palaniswami.Reportedly, Palaniswami had made a pre-condition ahead of the alliance talks — the ouster of Annamalai, given his ruthless attack on the AIADMK.
Following this development, Union home minister Amit Shah had said that “Annamalai’s orgainsational skills will be leveraged within party’s national framework.”The alliance was finalised for the upcoming Assembly polls. AIADMK will contest 178 seats, BJP 27, and the faction of PMK led by Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss will contest 18 seats.Amma Makkal Munnetra Katchi, led by TTV Dhinakaran, will contest 11 seats in the elections. This distribution reflects the seat-sharing agreement among the NDA allies in Tamil Nadu.Meanwhile, another setback for his followers came on February 3, 2026, when a peeved Annamalai stepped down as election in-charge for six assembly constituencies — Karaikudi, Singanallur, Srivaikuntam, Virugambakkam, Madurai (South), and Padmanabhapuram — citing his father’s ill health.The leader was, reportedly, upset over being restricted with only six out of the 234 assembly seats.Additionally, Annamalai’s name was also missing when the Tamil Nadu BJP on February 11 constituted a Legislative Assembly election management committee under its state chief Nainar Nagenthran.While Nagenthran was named as head of the committee, former Union minister and the party’s national executive member Pon Radhakrishnan was named as the coordinator.How caste played its roleCaste dynamics also seem to have played a role in the sidelining of Annamalai. Both him and EPS belong to Gounder community.Annamalai’s emergence as a potential chief minister was perceived by AIADMK as a direct challenge to EPS’s dominance within the alliance.Gounders fall under the Backward Classes category and account for roughly 5% to 7% of Tamil Nadu’s population. They are largely concentrated in western Tamil Nadu, or the Kongu Nadu region, which includes districts such as Coimbatore, Tiruppur, Erode, Namakkal, Karur and Salem.After J Jayalalithaa’s death, Edappadi K Palaniswami, a Gounder, assumed control of the AIADMK, sidelining the Sasikala family and O Panneerselvam, and assigning key cabinet portfolios to leaders from the community.Annamalai’s stint as BJP chiefAnnamalai emerged as a crowd-puller for the BJP in Tamil Nadu, keeping both himself and the party consistently in the spotlight during his tenure as state president while working to expand its base across the state.In December 2024, he publicly flogged himself six times to protest against the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam following the rape of a student at Anna University. In February 2025, he stirred controversy by threatening to bring down the DMK headquarters, Anna Arivalayam, “brick by brick.” Annamalai also built support among a section of voters through sharp attacks on Dravidian parties and their icons. He criticised EV Ramasamy and CN Annadurai, and at one point described J Jayalalithaa as a “Hindutva” leader. He further targeted the ruling DMK with corruption allegations, releasing what he called the “DMK Files.” The first part, published in April 2023, included charges against chief minister MK Stalin, his son and minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, and other party leaders. The second part, released in July 2023, alleged corruption involving nine DMK ministers.Ahead of the 2024 general elections, Annamalai undertook the ‘En Mann, En Makkal’ (My Soil, My People) yatra, covering all 234 assembly constituencies to energise party workers. While the BJP did not win any of the 23 seats it contested, the party claimed its vote share rose to 11 per cent from 3.7 per cent in 2019.
