Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, June 5: Like the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal, the BJP also seems to be facing disintegration in Tamil Nadu. In the last 24 hours, at least three prominent BJP leaders in Tamil Nadu have quit the saffron party after the party’s rout in the recent state Assembly elections even while claiming to have been “deeply inspired by the leadership of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”
A third key BJP leader in Tamil Nadu resigned from the party on Friday after the exit of former state chief K Annamalai and state vice president Karu Nagarajan. In a post on X, Tamil Nadu BJP state secretary Sumathi Venkatesh announced she has stepped down from her post and decided to “conclude my association with the party.”
She said she took the decision to leave the party after giving it a lot of thought and that it is with sadness she parted ways. “With a heavy heart, I have decided to step down from my responsibilities as State Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Tamil Nadu, and conclude my association with the party. It has been a matter of great pride and privilege to serve the party,” Venkatesh said.
“I remain deeply inspired by the leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi Ji and the ideals of nationalism, patriotism, and service to the nation that the BJP upholds. These values have guided me throughout my journey and will continue to do so,” she said.
“This decision has come after careful thought and is not without sadness. I am sincerely grateful to all party leaders, office bearers, and karyakartas at both the national and state levels for their guidance, support, and encouragement during my tenure. I respectfully request you to accept my resignation and relieve me of my responsibilities,” Venkatesh said in the post addressed to the BJP’s state chief. She has not shared her plans yet.
Annamalai after leaving the BJP began a political journey aimed at ushering in “common man politics,” distancing it from personality-driven politics and rejecting sycophancy and hereditary power. It is believed that the meteoric rise of actor-turned-politician C Joseph Vijay and his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), in the state long ruled by either the DMK or the AIADMK may have influenced Annamalai to attempt a new approach.
The BJP does not see a loss in Annamalai’s exit. “There will be no loss to the BJP due to his resignation. There won’t be any setback to the BJP, which is the biggest party in the world. The party will remain steadfast on its ideology,” Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagenthran told reporters.
In West Bengal, days after 60 of the 80 MLAs skipped a key meeting, only eight MLAs attended a fresh Trinamool Congress huddle at former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s Kalighat house in Kolkata on Friday. The Trinamool, which is facing a rebellion, later clarified that it was a National Working Committee meeting and not all MPs and MLAs were invited.
The Trinamool Congress has 28 Lok Sabha MPs; only four were present at the meeting on Friday at Mamata Banerjee’s Kalighat house in Kolkata, while 11 of the 13 Rajya Sabha MPs skipped the huddle. Mamata Banerjee’s nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, was among the MPs who attended the meeting. Derek O Brien and Dola Sen were the only Rajya Sabha MPs who turned up. Madan Mitra, Beena Mondal, Ashima Patra, Firhad Hakim, Kunal Ghosh, Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, Biman Banerjee and Ashok Deb were among the MLAs who attended.
“Pls note – it was a NATIONAL WORKING COMMITTEE and not of ALL MLAs or MPs. Many MPs like Mahua Moitra, Sushmita Dev, Mukul Sangma and Rajesh Tripathi, who are part of the National WC, had joined virtually,” the party said.
