EPS meets TN BJP president, discounts party MP’s assertion

A day after an AIADMK MP openly snubbed the BJP saying that either it should accept the chief ministerial candidature of Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) for the 2021 Assembly election or go its own way, a major firefighting operation has started at the highest level in Chennai to resuscitate the sinking partnership from a possible disaster.

The CM met Tamil Nadu BJP president L Murugan on Monday following intervention by Union Minister for Power Piyush Goyal, according to a source close to Murugan.

Though Murugan did not disclose what transpired in the meeting, the Chief Minister is believed to have told him not to take seriously the MP’s warning to the BJP to the heart.

“Murugan said that it was for BJP national president JP Nadda to endorse the chief ministerial candidate’s name because the AIADMK was part of the NDA alliance,” said Murugan’s close aide.

Narayanan Tiruppati, BJP’s senior spokesman feigned ignorance about the meeting between EPS and Murugan. “All I could say right now is that the AIADMK and the BJP are constituents of the NDA. There is no possibility of any kind of breaking of the alliance as on today,” said Narayanan.

He also pointed out that it was Murugan who first congratulated Palaniswamy when the executive committee of the AIADMK declared the latter as the CM candidate.

The reception accorded by the AIADMK Government to Home Minister Amit Shah when he visited Chennai last month is still fresh in public memory. The Chief Minister and his deputy O Panneerselvan along with senior Government officials were at Chennai airport to receive and see off Shah during the latter’s visit to the State in November.

“The BJP had not approached the AIADMK for any favours. It was during an official function in Chennai attended by the Home Minister that Panneerselvan and Palaniswami declared that AIADMK would continue its alliance with the Hindutva party. Nothing has changed since then,” said Narayanan.