AIADMK's Anwhar Raajha quits party amid contention over tie-up with BJP; joins DMK

Chennai: Senior AIADMK leader Anwhar Raajha quit the party on Monday and joined arch-rival DMK, in the first casualty of the party’s alliance with the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP).

Raajha, one of the prominent Muslim faces of the AIADMK, who served in the J Jayalalithaa cabinet from 2001-2006, has been critical of the alliance stitched for the 2026 assembly polls.

Minutes before he joined the DMK, the AIADMK expelled him as organising secretary and from his primary membership. Raajha’s decision to join the DMK wasn’t surprising as he had been vocal against the AIADMK-BJP alliance even commenting that the saffron party can never get a toehold in the state.

Raajha’s induction will come as a boost for the DMK in the minority-dominated Ramanathapuram district. He was also a former MLA and MP from Ramanathapuram.

Raajha was expelled from the AIADMK in November 2021 for backing V K Sasikala’s re-entry into the party. However, he rejoined the party in 2023 and made an attempt to enlist the support of minorities for the AIADMK in the 2024 elections but in vain.