Post Karnataka, AIADMK to wait and watch on possible tie-up with BJP

In the current political scenario, the ruling AIADMK should be ready to go alone in the Lok Sabha polls, a few party seniors including party joint convenor KP Munusamy and Lok Sabha deputy speaker M Thambidurai have allegedly told party workers during informal party interactions.

The same sentiment also prevails among other senior AIADMK leaders and MPs who had conveyed to the AIADMK leaders that an alliance with the BJP will certainly affect the prospects of the AIADMK in 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

According to informed AIADMK party sources, the rank and file of the ruling party are rattled by the recent bypoll defeats of the BJP. The elected representatives have also expressed that initiatives of the BJP like NEET, GST and Demonetisation will affect their campaign if there is an alliance with the saffron party.

Both Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and his deputy O Panneeerselvam have been explained that any alliance with the national party will have an impact on the AIADMK in Tamil Nadu. They have also expressed their opinion of following Amma’s (Jayalalithaa) strategy where the party can only select regional parties for alliance ignoring the national players, sources said.

Earlier, party senior Thambidurai had been constantly expressing that it will be tough to face the polls if the AIADMK and the BJP entered into an alliance and had blamed the Centre for initiating a series of I-T raids against the state Ministers, sources said.

“If Rajinikanth joins the BJP alliance, the AIADMK will be a part of the national alliance, otherwise, the AIADMK should go without the BJP for Lok Sabha polls,” an informed party senior and election in-charge to the Assembly bypolls told DT Next. When contacted, Munusamy said that a final decision on the alliance with the BJP or any other party is yet to be decided. “Let the Election Commission announce the schedule, we will take a decision at that time,” he quipped. However, Thambidurai was not available for comments when contacted.