CHENNAI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah officially announced the revival of the BJP-led NDA's alliance with the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu at a press conference on Friday evening. The announcement sets the stage for a joint campaign in the 2026 Assembly elections.

Shah said the AIADMK would lead the NDA in the state, describing it as a "natural alliance."

He also expressed confidence that the NDA alliance would form government in Tamil Nadu in 2026 and declared AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami as its chief ministerial candidate.

The announcement comes months after a public split between the BJP and AIADMK in 2023. The two parties had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha and 2021 Assembly elections together before parting ways ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

(With online desk inputs)