Behind the News is your round up of musings from the corridors of power. Annamalai has been promised a higher role in the party. It’ll take a few more months, but it’s on the way, a source said.
Published Jun 03, 2025 | 9:32 AM ⚊ Updated Jun 03, 2025 | 9:32 AM
K Annamalai.
Synopsis: K Annamalai has been silent ever since he stepped down from the post of the BJP’s Tamil Nadu president. Party sources said his relevance has not diminished, and he will be awarded a bigger role at the appropriate time.
K Annamalai has suddenly fallen silent. Until 12 April, the then-BJP president in Tamil Nadu, Annamalai, was never out of the headlines. He made news daily, either by taking sharp digs at the ruling party or by making new allegations. But now, he is rarely seen in public.
This has sparked speculation: Has he been sidelined in politics? Is he working toward something else behind the scenes? Some have even begun to forget him altogether.
Over the past few days, South First contacted BJP circles to find out what Annamalai has been up to. Interestingly, most people had little to say—only silence when asked about his whereabouts.
According to BJP sources, Annamalai was not in Tamil Nadu during the last week of May. On 26 May, when the Tamil Nadu BJP hosted a seminar on “One Nation, One Election” in Chennai with Andhra Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan in attendance, Annamalai did not participate. Party sources said he was then in Delhi.
While his activity on X continued, his posts have not created the kind of buzz they used to. His absence from the spotlight has led many to wonder: Where exactly is Annamalai?
That question was partially answered on Sunday, 1 June, when he appeared in Delhi and spoke at the “National Commemorative Seminar on 60 Years of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya’s Integral Humanism Lectures.”
Since then, he has returned to Tamil Nadu and taken part in a Chanakya Foundation event in Chennai. According to a source close to him, he is scheduled to attend similar events in Coimbatore and other districts in the coming days.
On 4 June—his birthday—several programmes are planned in Coimbatore, where he is expected to participate.
The source also said that later this month, Annamalai is likely to travel to San Francisco for party-related engagements. He is also said to be attending BJP events in other states.
When asked about Annamalai’s position within the Tamil Nadu BJP, the source said, “Everyone here knows how much influence he still has in Delhi. Even now, when someone in the state needs something from the central leadership, they’re told to go through Annamalai. They don’t have a choice.”
“Stepping down as state president was entirely his decision. He’s been promised a higher role in the party. It’ll take a few more months, but it’s on the way,” the source added.
When asked if that could be a coordinator role covering all South Indian states, the source said, “Could be. But nothing is certain yet. Once the national BJP president is announced—probably in two or three months—Annamalai’s new position will likely be made public.”
(Edited by Majnu Babu).
