AIADMK set for NDA reunion? Speculation rife as EPS arrives in Delhi to meet Amit Shah

The BJP and AIADMK had snapped ties in 2023. (File Photo: ANI)

A major political realignment could be on the cards ahead of the Assembly elections scheduled to be held in Tamil Nadu next with strong speculation of the AIADMK realigning forces with the Bharatiya Janata Party and be part of the NDA once again.

AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami is currently in Delhi and is scheduled to meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah where the alliance between the two parties could be discussed, reports The Indian Express.

The meeting assumes significance as Palaniswami, the party's general secretary, who has been opposing AIADMK rejoining forces with the BJP in the state. Ahead of Palaniswami's visit, AIADMK and BJP leaders held several meeting over the past few weeks.

The AIADMK has been wary of its return to the NDA, especially given the ruling DMK's projection of the BJP as a North-centric party. As per the IE report, sources said that the compulsions of political survival and pressure from Delhi have caused Palaniswami to change his mind.

The AIADMK is believed to have signalled to the BJP that it is even willing "to play second fiddle" provided that the BJP listens to the AIADMK's concerns and agrees to its terms.

Among the AIADMK's terms is the formation of a high-powered steering committee to oversee dealings with the BJP and that its authority would outrank that of Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai. Notably, Annamalai's constant attacks against the AIADMK and its leaders was seen as among the primary reasons behind the AIADMK parting ways with the BJP in 2023.

The AIADMK, however, has not sought Annamalai's removal, a development confirmed by a BJP leader.

Another condition set forth by the AIADMK is for the BJP to drop its intentions of pacifying the former's rebels TTV Dhinakaran and O Panneerselvam, something the BJP had been pressing Palaniswami in order to mend the divisions within the party.

The Indian Express quoted a senior leader as saying that the BJP-AIADMK alliance deal was "as good as done" and that the details were now being worked out at the highest levels.

The AIADMK first joined hands with the BJP following party supremo J Jayalalithaa’s demise in 2016, and the subsequent split in the party. However, after the DMK swept the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, Palaniswami withdrew from the BJP and eventually ended the alliance in September 2023.

However, the DMK’s impressive performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, followed by its victories in the bypolls and civic elections left Palaniswami with few options.

As one AIADMK leader put it: "They (BJP) are looking for control. They won't hesitate to split our party if we resist. This is not a choice; this is damage control."