Actor and choreographer Gayathri Raghuram announced on Twitter on Monday, January 3, that she is resigning from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for not being given equal opportunities and over lack of respect for women. She said, "Under Annamalai [Tamil Nadu BJP's state president] leadership women are not safe. I feel better to be trolled as an outsider (sic)."
Claiming that "nobody cares about true karyakartas [workers]", Gayathri stated that she still owed her allegiance to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Adding that the reason behind her resignation was Annamalai, she further accused him of being a "cheap tactic liar" and an "adharmic leader." Gayathri said, "I cannot continue under Annamalai leadership. Cannot expect social justice."
In her Twitter thread, Gayathri also thanked her fellow party workers and said she shared great love and respect for them. Addressing the women in the party, Gayathri said that women should not trust that anyone will save them and must not stay in places where they are not respected.
I have taken the decision with heavy heart to resign from TNBJP for not giving opportunity for an enquiry, equal rights & respect for women. Under Annamalai leadership women are not safe. I feel better to be trolled as an outsider.
— Gayathri Raguramm (@Gayathri_R_) January 2, 2023
.@narendramodi .@AmitShah @JPNadda @blsanthosh
Gayathri further stated that she is ready to file a police complaint against Annamalai and that he needed to be investigated. The actor turned politician also said that she will provide audio clips and videos as well to the police but did not mention what they contained.
On November 23, Annamalai had suspended Gayathri from all party responsibilities for six months because she "engaged in activities that brought disrepute to the party." However, Gayathri then said that she is not against the BJP and will continue working for the nation despite her suspension. According to The New Indian Express, Gayathri alleged that the Tamil Nadu BJP's intelligence wing vice-president Selvakumar had been trolling her on Twitter and she was suspended because she retorted to his messages.