A day after his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Edappadi K Palaniswami, the General Secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), confirmed that the alliance between his party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would continue. Speaking to the media, EPS stated, "There is no dispute between the AIADMK and the BJP or Annamalai [Tamil Nadu BJP chief]. Some people are attempting to create a division between us. Both parties will act according to their principles. Together, our alliance will succeed."
Speaking further about his interaction with Amit Shah, EPS said that it was a formal meeting, He added that he mentioned to the Home Minister about Finance Minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan’s alleged audio clip that was leaked. EPS told the media that there they have urged Amit Shah to order a probe into the allegations that were made in the audio clip.
Edappadi K Palaniswami's recent comments follow closely on the heels of statements made by Tamil Nadu BJP chief Annamalai, who had indicated his intention to release files containing allegations of corruption against AIADMK leaders at an opportune moment. Annamalai had also promised to expose the corruption of all parties that have governed Tamil Nadu. However, when asked about Annamalai's remarks on April 18, Palaniswami dismissed them, saying that he was not interested in commenting on the statements of an "immature leader." Jaykumar, a senior AIADMK leader, also criticised Annamalai's lack of political experience.
A few months ago, the AIADMK and the BJP were involved in a tussle as the EPS and the O Panneerselvam factions of the AIADMK fielded candidates for the bye-election in Erode. However, Annamalai expressed his support for the candidate fielded by the EPS faction and said that he has spoken to both the leaders to face the election as a unified force. Annamalai had also denied that he interfered with the AIADMK’s internal matters.