MK Alagiri denies reports of joining BJP alliance

MK Alagiri dismissed media reports calling them rumours.
MK Alagiri
MK Alagiri
Written by:

Former Union Minister MK Alagiri, who is the elder son of late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi, has denied reports that he is planning to join the BJP alliance. He also said that he has not taken any decision on whether to float his own political party before the 2021 Assembly Elections. His denial comes a day after reports stated that he is in talks with the BJP to join the party and will be meeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah when he visits Chennai on November 21. BJP state chief L Murugan had on Tuesday welcomed Alagiri to join the national party.

“There is nothing like that. If I am starting something, I will inform. Somebody is creating rumours about this. I have already refused all these news. If we decide something, I will inform you,” he told CNN News18. In an interview to Times Now, Alagiri said, "Nobody from BJP is in touch with me. Don't believe in rumours."

Several news channels had reported that MK Alagiri was in talks with the BJP and will be joining the party ahead of the 2021 Assembly Polls in Tamil Nadu. There were also reports that said that the former DMK man would be floating his own party in the name of his father M Karunanidhi - Kalaignar DMK or KDMK and it will be a part of the BJP alliance in Tamil Nadu for the upcoming elections.

A source close to Alagiri had told TNM on Monday that his first choice remains the DMK. “He has been asking to be readmitted into the DMK for a long time now but they have stonewalled him. It is not confirmed that he will join the BJP alliance as the thinking won’t match, so it will most likely not happen. He will likely start a new party. He has support in Tamil Nadu. His first choice, however, would be DMK. We are not able to understand what Stalin is thinking,” said the source. The DMK, meanwhile, is scheduled to have a high-level meeting on November 23. However, those close to Stalin including his son Udhayanidhi have opposed Alagiri’s return to the party.

MK Alagiri was expelled from the DMK in March 2014 for anti-party activities. He was first suspended in January 2014 and then expelled by the then chief of DMK M Karunanidhi. The expulsion came on the back of years of sibling rivalry between Alagari and his younger brother Stalin over who would take over the reins of the party.  Stalin eventually succeeded Karunanidhi after his demise in 2018.

Alagiri, who was once DMK’s face in southern Tamil Nadu, meanwhile, has maintained a low profile since his expulsion. After Karunanidhi’s death in August 2018, Alagiri had said that he was ready to accept Stalin as his leader if he was re-inducted into the party.  

Related Stories

No stories found.
The News Minute
www.thenewsminute.com