BJP leaders meet AIADMK chief in Chennai, discuss roadmap for Assembly elections

Chennai, Oct 7 (IANS) Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in charge of Tamil Nadu’s Assembly election strategy called on AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) in Chennai on Tuesday, signalling intensified coordination between the two allies ahead of the 2026 polls.

National BJP vice-president and Tamil Nadu election in-charge Baijayant Panda, along with newly appointed co-in-charge and Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol, reached Chennai for their first visit after being assigned the crucial task of strengthening the party’s poll machinery in the state.

On Monday evening, the duo held a detailed review meeting with the BJP’s state leadership at the party headquarters in T. Nagar, laying out organisational plans and outreach strategies.

The closed-door session was attended by BJP Tamil Nadu President Nainar Nagendran, Union Minister L. Murugan, senior leaders Aravind Menon, Sudhakar Reddy, organisational secretary Keshav Vinayakam, and prominent figures, including former state presidents Pon Radhakrishnan and Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan, veteran H. Raja, MLA Vanathi Srinivasan, and actor-turned-politician Sarathkumar.

On Tuesday morning, Panda and Nagendran visited EPS at his residence on Greenways Road. According to party insiders, the meeting was warm and focused on reviving joint campaigning and preparing a seat-sharing roadmap for the Assembly elections.

During the interaction, Nagendran personally invited Palaniswami to be part of upcoming BJP events, while both sides reportedly discussed plans to avoid friction and project a united front against the ruling DMK.

Though no official announcement was made, sources indicated that both parties are working to finalise a broad electoral understanding, with the BJP aiming to expand its seat share and the AIADMK keen to maintain its leadership role within the alliance.

Political observers note that the early engagement between the BJP’s new Tamil Nadu strategists and EPS could help iron out differences that had emerged in recent months and rebuild the 2024 Lok Sabha partnership into a stronger Assembly-level coalition.

The AIADMK-BJP dialogue is expected to continue in the coming weeks, with working groups likely to be formed soon to address campaign themes and constituency-level coordination.

--IANS

aal/dpb