<p>Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had negotiated quite a few truce pacts in the post-J Jayalalithaa AIADMK, has stayed away from interfering or taking sides in the latest round of power struggles between Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam for the control of the Dravidian party.</p>.<p>Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai, a Karnataka-cadre IPS officer before he took voluntary retirement from service in 2019, spoke to Palaniswami and congratulated him on his appointment as interim general secretary of the AIADMK on Monday. However, Annamalai and the BJP refrained from announcing this in the public -- it is interpreted as the saffron party’s way of keeping EPS happy by congratulating him on his new appointment, while not completely dumping OPS and giving him some hope.</p>.<p>Ever since the chorus for “unitary leadership” grew louder in the AIADMK on June 14 and ending on July 11 with the culmination of EPS’ ascension and OPS’ expulsion from the party, the BJP has remained "neutral".</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/amid-power-struggle-within-aiadmk-sasikala-says-she-should-be-made-party-general-secretary-1126029.html" target="_blank">Amid power struggle within AIADMK, Sasikala says she should be made party General Secretary</a></strong></p>.<p><strong>Being neutral</strong></p>.<p>The party’s top leadership refused to entertain OPS when he was in New Delhi to accompany Droupadi Murmu when she filed her nomination papers, giving hints that the AIADMK has to solve its internal disputes on its own. Political observers said it was because of the BJP’s realisation that the party organisation is behind EPS, and it cannot afford to upset the dominant faction with the presidential and vice-presidential polls just around the corner.</p>.<p>Senior journalists R Bhagwan Singh and Maalan Narayanan told <em>DH</em> that the BJP would “wait and watch” the happenings within the AIADMK -- OPS is certain to take his expulsion to the courts and disbanding of dual leadership to the Election Commission of India (ECI) -- before arriving at a decision on whom to support as general elections are two years away.</p>.<p>“As things stand today, scales are heavily tilted towards EPS, while OPS’ political stocks have plummeted to a new low. They will wait to see who rises and who falls. While they will not rock the EPS boat, they will also continue to engage with OPS. Because the ultimate aim of the BJP is to swallow the AIADMK’s huge cadre base,” Singh said.</p>.<p><strong>‘BJP affinity is towards AIADMK’s vote bank’</strong></p>.<p>Echoing Singh’s views, Maalan said the BJP has no personal interest in supporting EPS or OPS. "Their (BJP’s) affinity is towards the AIADMK’s vote bank. If the AIADMK weakens, the core anti-DMK vote may look at BJP as an option while those who are titled towards the Dravidian ideology might be open to the DMK. It depends on how strong the AIADMK stays in the coming years. This will take some time to come to shape,” he added.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/battle-for-power-within-aiadmk-shifts-to-election-commission-banks-1126032.html" target="_blank">Battle for power within AIADMK shifts to Election Commission, banks</a></strong></p>.<p>Maalan also said the BJP won’t gain much from the continuing power struggle within the AIADMK if it takes a caste polarisation turn with both EPS and OPS drawing strength from their respective castes -- Gounder and Thevar. “If that happens, the BJP which depends on religious polarisation to make its mark will be at a disadvantageous position,” the senior journalist said.</p>.<p>After the AIADMK lost power in May 2021, the BJP has been making huge noise in Tamil Nadu with Annamalai trying to project the saffron party as the “principal rival” to the DMK much to the discomfiture of his senior ally. The BJP is now taking the party to the hinterland with Annamalai making frequent visits to districts with a focus on the 2024 polls -- he has set a target of 25 seats for the BJP.</p>.<p><strong>Keeping all options open</strong></p>.<p>While the options for OPS are limited, he might join hands with V K Sasikala against whom he rebelled in 2017 leading to a vertical split in the AIADMK as EPS is now the “common enemy".</p>.<p>“If OPS and Sasikala join together, it will be interesting to see where the BJP stands. In my opinion, the BJP may not want to be seen siding with the faction that has Sasikala in it. While focusing on increasing its presence in the state, BJP will keep a close eye on AIADMK. It will take a call on alliance close to the elections,” Narayanan said.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/churning-in-aiadmk-gives-dmk-leverage-opens-up-new-vistas-for-bjp-1125691.html" target="_blank">Churning in AIADMK gives DMK leverage, opens up new vistas for BJP</a></strong></p>.<p>Singh said EPS, while accommodating BJP on certain issues, has also shown the saffron party that he can stand his ground when it comes to taking important decisions. “When BJP asked him to accommodate Sasikala and T T V Dhinakaran before the 2021 polls, EPS refused. And so, the BJP would be a bit wary of his complete cooperation during the election time and keep OPS as a stand-by even if only to arm twist his rival,” he added.</p>
<p>Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which had negotiated quite a few truce pacts in the post-J Jayalalithaa AIADMK, has stayed away from interfering or taking sides in the latest round of power struggles between Edappadi K Palaniswami and O Panneerselvam for the control of the Dravidian party.</p>.<p>Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai, a Karnataka-cadre IPS officer before he took voluntary retirement from service in 2019, spoke to Palaniswami and congratulated him on his appointment as interim general secretary of the AIADMK on Monday. However, Annamalai and the BJP refrained from announcing this in the public -- it is interpreted as the saffron party’s way of keeping EPS happy by congratulating him on his new appointment, while not completely dumping OPS and giving him some hope.</p>.<p>Ever since the chorus for “unitary leadership” grew louder in the AIADMK on June 14 and ending on July 11 with the culmination of EPS’ ascension and OPS’ expulsion from the party, the BJP has remained "neutral".</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/amid-power-struggle-within-aiadmk-sasikala-says-she-should-be-made-party-general-secretary-1126029.html" target="_blank">Amid power struggle within AIADMK, Sasikala says she should be made party General Secretary</a></strong></p>.<p><strong>Being neutral</strong></p>.<p>The party’s top leadership refused to entertain OPS when he was in New Delhi to accompany Droupadi Murmu when she filed her nomination papers, giving hints that the AIADMK has to solve its internal disputes on its own. Political observers said it was because of the BJP’s realisation that the party organisation is behind EPS, and it cannot afford to upset the dominant faction with the presidential and vice-presidential polls just around the corner.</p>.<p>Senior journalists R Bhagwan Singh and Maalan Narayanan told <em>DH</em> that the BJP would “wait and watch” the happenings within the AIADMK -- OPS is certain to take his expulsion to the courts and disbanding of dual leadership to the Election Commission of India (ECI) -- before arriving at a decision on whom to support as general elections are two years away.</p>.<p>“As things stand today, scales are heavily tilted towards EPS, while OPS’ political stocks have plummeted to a new low. They will wait to see who rises and who falls. While they will not rock the EPS boat, they will also continue to engage with OPS. Because the ultimate aim of the BJP is to swallow the AIADMK’s huge cadre base,” Singh said.</p>.<p><strong>‘BJP affinity is towards AIADMK’s vote bank’</strong></p>.<p>Echoing Singh’s views, Maalan said the BJP has no personal interest in supporting EPS or OPS. "Their (BJP’s) affinity is towards the AIADMK’s vote bank. If the AIADMK weakens, the core anti-DMK vote may look at BJP as an option while those who are titled towards the Dravidian ideology might be open to the DMK. It depends on how strong the AIADMK stays in the coming years. This will take some time to come to shape,” he added.</p>.<p><strong>Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/battle-for-power-within-aiadmk-shifts-to-election-commission-banks-1126032.html" target="_blank">Battle for power within AIADMK shifts to Election Commission, banks</a></strong></p>.<p>Maalan also said the BJP won’t gain much from the continuing power struggle within the AIADMK if it takes a caste polarisation turn with both EPS and OPS drawing strength from their respective castes -- Gounder and Thevar. “If that happens, the BJP which depends on religious polarisation to make its mark will be at a disadvantageous position,” the senior journalist said.</p>.<p>After the AIADMK lost power in May 2021, the BJP has been making huge noise in Tamil Nadu with Annamalai trying to project the saffron party as the “principal rival” to the DMK much to the discomfiture of his senior ally. The BJP is now taking the party to the hinterland with Annamalai making frequent visits to districts with a focus on the 2024 polls -- he has set a target of 25 seats for the BJP.</p>.<p><strong>Keeping all options open</strong></p>.<p>While the options for OPS are limited, he might join hands with V K Sasikala against whom he rebelled in 2017 leading to a vertical split in the AIADMK as EPS is now the “common enemy".</p>.<p>“If OPS and Sasikala join together, it will be interesting to see where the BJP stands. In my opinion, the BJP may not want to be seen siding with the faction that has Sasikala in it. While focusing on increasing its presence in the state, BJP will keep a close eye on AIADMK. It will take a call on alliance close to the elections,” Narayanan said.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/south/churning-in-aiadmk-gives-dmk-leverage-opens-up-new-vistas-for-bjp-1125691.html" target="_blank">Churning in AIADMK gives DMK leverage, opens up new vistas for BJP</a></strong></p>.<p>Singh said EPS, while accommodating BJP on certain issues, has also shown the saffron party that he can stand his ground when it comes to taking important decisions. “When BJP asked him to accommodate Sasikala and T T V Dhinakaran before the 2021 polls, EPS refused. And so, the BJP would be a bit wary of his complete cooperation during the election time and keep OPS as a stand-by even if only to arm twist his rival,” he added.</p>
