AIADMK seniors meet BJP leaders over rift in ties, saffron party backs state leadership

Chennai: The electoral ties between the AIADMK and the BJP in Tamil Nadu continue to be dicey with the Dravidian major keen on an apology from the saffron party's state chief K Annamalai over his purported remark on former Chief Minister C N Annadurai.

The BJP central leadership, though not in so many words, conveyed that it backed the aggressive politics of Annamalai for the party's development, a senior BJP leader said on Saturday. The AIADMK delegation that air-dashed to the national capital on Friday could not meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah but managed to meet party president J P Nadda and Union Minister Piyush Goyal, in-charge of Tamil Nadu, and sought the leadership's intervention in making Annamalai apologise.

If this was not possible, then they could consider posting a non-controversial leader who could work in close coordination with the AIADMK during the Lok Sabha election next year, they reportedly said. "Our leadership does not relish the idea of shifting Annamalai as he has been reviving the party and expanding its base spectacularly. He had only made a remark alluding to Annadurai during the Sanatana Dharma row in the state," BJP state vice president M Chakravarthy told PTI. There was no logic in the AIADMK getting offended as Annamalai had not targetted the party, he said. A senior AIADMK leader insisted that the party represented Annadurai's ideology and perpetuated his name through the party while AIADMK's flag contained his image.

"The meeting, nevertheless, was smooth and cordial. It enabled us to take up issues with the BJP leadership," he said. Meanwhile, BJP Mahila Morcha president Vanathi Srinivasan said the central leadership will take the final call on the alliance. "A decision on alliance will be taken and announced by our party leaders," the Coimbatore South legislator told reporters here. Strangely, the meeting with the BJP leaders took place days after a former AIADMK Minister D Jayakumar called off the alliance with the BJP. Party MP C Ve Shanmugam, and former state Ministers: S P Velumani, P Thangamani and Natham R Viswanathan were among the delegation that called on Nadda and Goyal.