Chennai: Eighteen months after snapping ties with BJP and quitting NDA, AIADMK leadership is warming up to the saffron party for a possible revival of the alliance for the 2026 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, reports Julie Mariappan.
A 45-minute meeting between an AIADMK delegation led by party general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami and Union home minister Amit Shah in Delhi Tuesday night initiated the reconciliation, multiple sources told TOI.
“Both want the relationship to be taken forward. The next course of action will follow. Shah made a strong point, saying the ‘corrupt DMK govt’ must not return in 2026,” said a senior AIADMK leader. Shah responded positively to some of AIADMK’s demands, he said.
Palaniswami told reporters in Delhi that the meeting focused on Tamil Nadu issues like delimitation, the two-language policy, pending MGNREGS and SSA dues, and the Tasmac scam. He added that the alliance will be decided closer to the 2026 election
BJP national co-in-charge of Tamil Nadu P Sudhakar Reddy is scheduled to meet Shah and party national president J P Nadda on Wednesday night. BJP state president K Annamalai left for Delhi on Wednesday.
Even as the AIADMK delegation was meeting Shah, the Union minister’s official X handle had a message related to the 2026 Tamil Nadu election. “As soon as the NDA govt is formed in Tamil Nadu in the year 2026, the ‘flood of liquor’ and ‘storm of corruption’ will stop.” The message was also posted in Tamil. Palaniswami acknowledged the post as reflecting Shah’s views.
