New Delhi:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin today described the renewed friendship between the BJP and the AIADMK as a “corrupt alliance of defeat”. Mr Stalin accused both parties of mortgaging the state’s autonomy for the pursuit of power.
Mr Stalin’s remarks come a day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah visited Chennai and formally announced the reconstitution of the BJP-AIADMK alliance for the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. The renewed partnership comes nearly two years after the two parties severed ties in September 2023, reportedly over contentious remarks made by BJP’s K Annamalai about former AIADMK leaders, including former chief minister J Jayalalithaa.
“The AIADMK-BJP alliance is an alliance doomed to fail. It was the people of Tamil Nadu who handed repeated defeats to this coalition. Now, Union Home Minister Amit Shah has reconstituted the same failed alliance,” Mr Stalin said in a statement.
Stalin questioned the lack of ideological clarity of the BJP-AIADMK pact, asserting that Mr Shah had failed to articulate the foundational principles on which the alliance rests.
“AIADMK claims to oppose NEET, the imposition of Hindi, the three-language policy, and the Waqf Act. They also claim to demand that Tamil Nadu’s representation should not be reduced during constituency delimitation. Are all these part of the ‘common minimum programme’? The Union Home Minister did not speak about any of these. Nor did he allow the AIADMK leadership to speak. Instead, he used the press conference solely to criticize the DMK, the DMK government, and me personally,” Mr Stalin said.
Mr Stalin went further, pointing out that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is currently probing NEET malpractices in five states, with arrests made among students and parents. “Under whose control is the CBI? Let him look into this and then answer whether opposition to NEET is a distraction or a genuine effort to protect medical education,” he said.
Law and Order: Manipur vs Tamil Nadu
Addressing Mr Shah’s criticism of law and order in Tamil Nadu, Mr Stalin drew a contrast with violence-hit Manipur.
“It is utterly condemnable for a Home Minister to irresponsibly claim that law and order has deteriorated in Tamil Nadu. This is not Manipur – this is Tamil Nadu,” he said. “The BJP ruled over a state where more than 250 people were killed in the past 18 months. The Home Minister who failed to restore peace there now seeks to disturb peace in a peaceful state like Tamil Nadu.”
Corruption Allegations Reignited
In perhaps the most searing part of his statement, Mr Stalin targeted AIADMK’s alleged history of corruption, particularly singling out Jayalalithaa. “Former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had to step down twice due to corruption charges,” Mr Stalin said. “She was sentenced to four years imprisonment in the disproportionate assets case by a special court in Bengaluru after years of legal proceedings. If the BJP forms an alliance with her party, can it still speak credibly about corruption?”
He also alleged that AIADMK functionaries fled to the BJP after two central raids to avoid prosecution. Mr Stalin also accused AIADMK of surrendering Tamil Nadu’s autonomy.
“The BJP leadership has a calculated plan to eradicate Tamil through Hindi imposition, to block Tamil people’s progress through various conspiracies, and to undermine Tamil Nadu’s rights through constituency delimitation. The AIADMK, which has long surrendered itself like an old bonded slave camp, is being coerced by threats to implement these conspiracies,” he said.
The Alliance Announcement
On Friday, Mr Shah declared that the 2026 Assembly polls would be fought under the leadership of Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) in the state.
“This election will be fought at the national level under Narendra Modi’s leadership and AIADMK chief Edappadi Palaniswami at state level,” Mr Shah said.
Recalling the 1998 alliance where the AIADMK-BJP combine won 30 of 39 seats in Tamil Nadu, Mr Shah expressed confidence that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would return to power in the state. Mr Shah downplayed suggestions that the BJP had influenced AIADMK’s internal matters or that K Annamalai’s removal had been a precondition for the alliance.
EPS described the alliance as “founded on a shared vision for Tamil Nadu’s progress and prosperity.” He praised Prime Minister Modi’s “unwavering support” and expressed confidence that the renewed alliance would usher in development for Tamil Nadu.
