A day after Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Tamil Nadu IT cell chief CTR Nirmal Kumar resigned and joined the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), party IT wing secretary Dilip Kannan quit the party on Monday, March 6. Like Nirmal Kumar, Kannan has named state party chief K Annamalai as the reason behind his quitting the party.
The BJP leader, who was in charge of the IT cell in the party's stronghold in Kanyakumari district, announced his resignation from the party through social media platforms, saying he was leaving the BJP "with a heavy heart". In a statement, Dilip said, “When Annamalai became the head, he said that he will create 500 leaders. It has been 20 months since he came to power. How many leaders has he created so far?”
Alleging that Annamalai does not want anyone in the party to have media spotlight apart from himself, Dilip claimed that he had “destroyed” KT Raghavan, a senior BJP party member from Tamil Nadu who had greater connections with the leaders in Delhi. Raghavan, who was BJP’s Tamil Nadu General Secretary, resigned from the party in August 2021, after YouTuber Madan Ravichandran published a sting video of the leader allegedly engaged in an explicit video call with a woman.
Dilip further alleged that Annamalai would use swear words in the presence of state and district-level leaders and would “act like a police officer.” Dilip said, “If we tell him that a BJP party worker has been arrested, he [Annamalai] would ask why the worker put up controversial posts instead of offering him legal help. When L Murugan was the head of the BJP, he brought several important leaders to the BJP. Did Annamalai bring anyone?”
Claiming that Annamalai had spied on party workers who had been in the party for a long time, Dilip said, “90% of the workers in the party will know whether I am speaking the truth or lying. You wait and watch how many more people are going to resign because of him.” Dilip ended his statement by thanking all the party workers who had travelled with him thus far.
Kannan's resignation, close on the heels of Nirmal Kumar, has led to the BJP turning defensive with senior leaders not responding to the questions posed by the media. However, the AIADMK's decision to accommodate Nirmal Kumar has led to a war of words between leaders of the two parties.
Amar Prasad Reddy, state in charge of the BJP's sports and skill development wing and a close aide of Annamalai, said, "AIADMK being an alliance partner should not have done this". He also added that under the leadership of Annamalai, the BJP would form the government in Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK hit out against Amar Prasad Reddy's statement and mocked him for speaking of the alliance dharma.
AIADMK being an alliance partner shouldn't have done this.
— Amar Prasad Reddy (@amarprasadreddy) March 6, 2023
BJP under the leadership of Thalaivar @annamalai_k will form government in Tamil Nadu.
Meanwhile, former BJP leader and actor Gayatri Raghuram, who quit the party a couple of months ago, also expressed her opinion on the issue. "Annamalai was asked to reach grassroots to grow the BJP in Tamil Nadu. Instead, Annamalai is cutting off BJP roots in the state. TN BJP doesn't need DMK, MDMK, VCK, CPI, INC or NTK. Annamalai is good enough to finish BJP in Tamil Nadu", she said. Raghuram, a choreographer, actor and anchor, resigned from the party after coming out against Annamalai and his style of functioning.
Talking to IANS on condition of anonymity, a senior state BJP leader said, "The BJP has been getting the support of the Brahmin community from time immemorial. This was the base of the Tamil Nadu BJP. Till L Murugan was at the helm, the growth of the party was organic and was in the right direction. When Annamalai came to lead the BJP, he thought that the BJP could be changed overnight and tried to impose his dictatorial attitude in the party, which was not well accepted by the veterans." The leader said that if Annamalai does not change his attitude towards the state BJP, the party will not succeed.
(With IANS inputs)