AIADMK Will Pick Its Chief Ministerial Candidate, Says BJP Ahead of Tamil Nadu Assembly Polls

The BJP on Monday said its ‘major’ partner in Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK would decide its Chief Ministerial candidate for the Assembly elections, due during April-May 2021. After maintaining that the National Democratic Alliance leadership would announce the Chief Ministerial candidate, following poll notification, the Saffron party appeared to have made a climbdown.

“They are the major partners. In Tamil Nadu state, AIADMK is the major partner. They will decide who their next Chief Ministerial candidate is. They will decide,” BJP national general secretary and in-charge of Tamil Nadu C T Ravi said here. Though the BJP had maintained that the CM candidate, would be from the largest constituent (AIADMK), it had said a formal decision and its announcement shall be made by the NDA Coordination Committee.

The Tamil Nadu unit chief of the BJP, L Murugan had all along said an announcement on CM candidate would be made by the party top leadership and did not come forward to explicitly endorse the candidture of incumbent Chief Minister and AIADMK CM nominee, K Palaniswami. During the intervening period, when the BJP stuck to its stand, the AIADMK twice (on December 27 at its first poll rally and at its general council meet on January 9) made it clear that Palaniswami was the CM candidate.

At its poll rally, the AIADMK said its partners had to accept its choice of CM candidate so as to be part of the alliance led by it in Tamil Nadu. Senior ruling party leader K P Munusamy also had spoken repeatedly that national parties had no sway in state politics.