NEW DELHI: As the Tamil Nadu unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prepares to welcome its next president, all eyes are on what the future holds for K Annamalai, the party’s outgoing chief in the southern state.
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The retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who resigned from service in 2019 and joined the BJP the following year, was appointed head of Tamil Nadu BJP in 2021.
So, what’s next for him?
Delhi calling?
The most commonly accepted theory is that the 40-year-old will be relocated to Delhi to be inducted in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government. In a social media post on Thursday, Union home minister and ex-BJP president Amit Shah lauded him for his “unprecedented contribution” and “commendable accomplishments” as the party’s Tamil Nadu head.
Organizational role?
He could also be handed a key role within the party, with Shah’s social media post noting that the “BJP will leverage Annamalai Ji’s organizational skills in the party’s national framework.”
The party is also set to get a new national president; the incumbent, Union health minister JP Nadda, is on an extension, having succeeded Shah in early 2020. On social media, some BJP supporters have called for Annamalai to be elevated as its new president. However, this is highly improbable as the post will to go to someone with years of experience.
Or will it be Tamil Nadu?
Annamalai could also be be tasked with working for the BJP in his home state, where it has traditionally been a weak player. In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP contested 23 of the state’s 39 seats but drew a blank. However, it recorded a vote share of 11%, up from 7.5% in the 2019 polls. The improved show came under Annamalai, who, however, lost from the Coimbatore constituency, where he was the runner up to Ganapathi Rajkumar of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
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He recently said, “I am in politics for the sake of a single man, Prime Minister Narendra Modi…whatever may be his command, I will follow that.”
