Policeman-turned-politician since taking charge of Tamil Nadu unit of Bharatiya Janata Party in July 2021 K Annamalai Made laws for local leaders and activists, and broke the whip on non-executors. He earned praise from top officials after leading the BJP to a credible performance in this year’s Tamil Nadu urban civic polls, and is now eyeing the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and 2026 assembly polls. He spoke exclusively to News18 on several issues, including the BJP’s development plan in Tamil Nadu, its ‘anti-Tamil’ image, what he thinks about the ruling DMK, his party’s relationship with the AIADMK, as well as issues like Are included. ‘Dravidianism’ and ‘Conversion’. Edited excerpt:
How do you see the BJP in Tamil Nadu since you took over?
More than me taking over, it’s consistency that’s important. BJP has a strategy and we are working towards achieving it. In the party, we do not focus on individuals but on the purpose and collective leadership of the party. In the last ten months, we have become aggressive in taking on the DMK and exposing their mistakes on the people’s platform. I firmly believe that people in Tamil Nadu want an alternative to the DMK – which stands against family politics, corruption and corporate politics. BJP is that kind of party and is the real alternative for DMK in Tamil Nadu in future.
How are you presenting yourself to the people of Tamil Nadu apart from the DMK?
BJP’s ideology is 180 degree opposite of DMK’s. We believe in solving people’s issues and focusing on every section of the society unlike DMK. Wherever we are in power, our service delivery has been great and we have solved the last mile delivery issue and provided people what they want. The DMK can’t even give the Pongal gift that they promised… one of the 22 items… properly to their voters. BJP, on the other hand, is all about empowering the common man, providing a clean image – both public and personal – and handling money in the most effective manner. On the other hand, DMK’s idea of governance is to make people dependent on the party and the government.
Tamil Nadu is being mismanaged by the DMK. The state is in debt of over Rs 6.5 lakh crore and we have seen how close the revenue of Rs 9,000 crore comes from TASMAC. According to DMK, social justice is to allow alcohol to flow freely. Look at Modiji’s rule in Gujarat – the government was run without taking a single penny as revenue from the liquor lobby, and even presented a surplus budget. In future, there will definitely be a clash of ideas between DMK and BJP.
Tamil Nadu is a Dravidian state. Why do you think BJP can become a big force?
There is no such thing as Dravidian ideology. i keep asking Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin What is the Dravidian model of development? The CM replied that the Dravidian model is about inclusion. Is BJP not inclusive? How can a family run a party if the DMK is inclusive? There are 44 families in Tamil Nadu that dominate the DMK and that means two to three generations of that family keep coming to power. Is this what they call the Dravidian model of inclusivity? The model that is highly corrupt, personality focused, and which does not focus on empowering the common man? It is not Dravidian model but they should call it Gopalapuram model or DMK model. DMK cannot take ownership of the Dravidian world. We believe that whoever belongs to this land is a Dravidian in the true sense and it is the BJP which is the alternative to people’s trust. We are in direct talks with DMK on this issue.
So how do you define Dravidianism and the BJP’s relationship with Dravidianism?
Dravidism is about taking everyone along and social justice. It is not about brahmin bashing, OBC bashing or being anti-Hindu. Dravidism is about empowering all sections of the society, as it has been doing for over 350 years. It is about keeping the land spiritual and nationalistic. This is the land of Indians who talk about Mother India. Tamil Nadu has given birth to scholars, researchers, freedom fighters till 1967. Somebody takes over Dravidian land and claims it as his own? This is not acceptable.
You had recently severed ties with your ally AIADMK for a friendly contest in the urban civic polls. How do you assess the performance of the party after contesting the election alone?
For either party, the legitimate test is to let it grow. Firstly, in the urban civic polls, the BJP got a huge opportunity to take the party across the state. Secondly, we were able to identify 5,000 young leaders of the next generation who contested on our party ticket. Third, the party was able to win seats where we had no presence. And fourth, we are now the single largest party in terms of vote share. On the whole, we can say that the goals and criteria that the party had set for itself during the urban body elections have been achieved. This is just the beginning, we will grow bigger and stronger from here.
What do you see as the future of AIADMK?
I believe that all our political allies should do well. It is in the interest of the state. But being the state president of Tamil Nadu, I am interested in taking the BJP forward. My primary task is to increase the party cadre base.
Does Sasikala still have any future in politics? What is your opinion about the possibility of bringing back TTV Dinakaran and Sasikala to AIADMK?
I see that 8.5 crore people of Tamil Nadu have a future in politics, if they want to. Anyone can come and contest elections. I don’t want to comment on any particular person. People of Tamil Nadu love those who work for them, fight for their rights and needs and serve them. Whoever wants to do this has a future in Tamil Nadu politics. I don’t want to comment on what is happening in AIADMK and their party. The decision lies with the leaders of his party. I am not interested in how the other party tries to resolve its internal issues. I am busy running my party in Tamil Nadu.
Do you think Tamil Nadu should have an anti-conversion law?
We have to understand the difference between anti-conversion law and forced conversion law. You cannot force anyone in any way and try to convert them from the religion in which they are born. They are doing two kinds of harm: one to the religion they are born in and the new religion they are trying to enter. Any kind of forced conversion is condemnable.
What is your target for the number of seats for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections?
As a party, we don’t have targets or numbers. But I would be really happy and I take it as my responsibility to send a large number of MPs from Tamil Nadu to Modiji’s cabinet. Modi ji has done a lot for the people of Tamil Nadu and there should be a relationship between the Prime Minister and the elected MPs of Tamil Nadu. Plans should flow seamlessly from the Centre. Till now, TN has received Rs 7.5 lakh crore from the Centre. The people of Tamil Nadu deserve better governance and I am ready to send a large number of MPs from my state. For the 2026 assembly elections, I have set a target of 150 MLAs and for 2024 the bigger the number, the better for us.
What do you think about Kamal Haasan’s political future?
Many members have left Kamal Haasan’s party and joined other parties. People gave him two chances. Later he realized that the party was not taking up the issues of the people. He has to decide the future of MNM in politics. Looking at the recent urban body elections, there was not a single place where the MNM came close to the BJP. Just because Kamal Haasan opposed Modiji and BJP, nobody gets votes. People realized that this is being done only for politics.
Can BJP remove the anti-Tamil, pro-Hindi tag?
People don’t believe in all these things. There may be parties who may attempt to use their own television channels to publicize such allegations. It doesn’t turn into votes. People do not believe the tag, rather they understand that BJP stands for its principles and people are slowly accepting it.
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