We speak only to the boss, EPS snubs Annamalai again

MADURAI: Snubbing BJP State president K Annamalai yet again, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said the party discusses matters about alliances only with the national leadership of the party and not the State level leaders in Tamil Nadu.

Speaking to the media outside the Madurai airport on Sunday, Palaniswami repeatedly parried questions about Annamalai’s recent statements on alliance and corruption, and refused to even name the BJP leader.

“We have requested the media multiple times not to ask us about him. The ones who take the decision [for BJP] are in Delhi - Prime Minister Narendra Modi, [Union Home Minister] Amit Shah and [party president] JP Nadda. Only they are the ones who are responsible. When there is a boss on top, why do you ask about the underlings,” said EPS.

Recalling how it was when Tamilisai Soundararajan and L Murugan occupied the post of BJP State president, Palaniswami said the party was not concerned about the person occupying the State leadership. “We hold discussions only with the national leadership, not the ones here. That was how it was during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and also in the Assembly elections in 2021. Then, we did not discuss anything with the State president,” EPS added.

When asked about Annamalai’s statement that he would expose not only the DMK but all parties that ruled the State – which was widely seen as a thinly veiled threat to the AIADMK – Palaniswami repeated his statement that the media should stop asking him any questions about him, yet again refraining from naming the BJP leader.