Tamil Nadu BJP organising secretary sent back to RSS; Annamalai questions on lack of strategy to fight DMK

With just a month to go for the assembly elections, the BJP’s Tamil Nadu unit on Tuesday relieved its general secretary (organisation) Kesava Vinayagam from the post and reassigned him to full-time RSS work. The sudden move comes a week after the decision by the state unit to appoint senior leaders as in-charges for assembly constituencies led to a massive row within the party.

Former state unit chief K Annamalai had last week stepped down from the responsibility, citing his father’s “ill-health.” Several other leaders, who were appointed as in-charges, also objected to the move questioning the logic behind confining popular leaders to a few constituencies, prompting the state unit to withdraw the announcement.

“Kesava Vinayagam, who was functioning as the organising secretary of the Tamil Nadu BJP will now handle Sadbhav (social harmony and goodwill) initiatives of the RSS across Tamil Nadu. Additionally, he will also be executive member of the RSS from north Tamil Nadu,” the RSS said in a statement.

Kesava Vinayagam was drafted into the BJP from RSS in 2015 and has been with the saffron party since then. The decision to remove Kesava Vinayagam from the post was taken late Monday night at a meeting of BJP and RSS leaders here.

During the meeting, sources told DH that Annamalai demanded purpose and clarity of the work he was being asked to do for the assembly elections and questioned whether the AIADMK-led National Democratic Alliance has any strategy to defeat the DMK in the 2026 assembly polls.

The sources said Annamalai also asked how he can go to the field and work without knowing the BJP’s strategy for the assembly polls and why and how he was appointed as in-charge for six constituencies. “He also told the meeting that he was prepared even to work in a single constituency if there was a clear strategy. He also said it was unfair to expect anyone to work without a strategy,” a source with knowledge of the developments said.

The source added that Annamalai also questioned the state leadership on why protests are not being organised on critical issues like postponement of the exams by the Tamil Nadu Public Services Commission at the last minute.

Annamalai, who has been feeling sidelined ever since he stepped down as the state chief to facilitate BJP’s alliance with the AIADMK, was brought to center stage by the Central leadership in December to bring back AMMK’s T T V Dhinakaran into the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

He had been keeping away from participating in events organized by the state unit and was also disappointed with the way the BJP was dealing with AIADMK. Annamalai, who is seen as the most popular leader of the Tamil Nadu BJP, has been hogging the limelight in almost all events attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Annamalai, who took both Dravidian parties head on, is also believed to be upset with the BJP leadership’s soft approach towards the AIADMK.