Tamil Nadu: Despite Favorable Opinion Poll, Annamalai Backs Out From Lok Sabha Polls

Despite recent opinion polls indicating the rising popularity of the BJP in Tamil Nadu, state chief Annamalai has decided not to contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Bureaucrat-turned-politician said he is "already roaming around the state" and "unable to finish the work" assigned to him.

There were speculations that Annamalai would contest from Coimbatore, but he has decided to opt out of Lok Sabha polls. He said that there are capable leaders in the party. "We will announce the best candidate there," the Tamil Nadu BJP chief added.

However, a few weeks ago, Annamalai had said that he would contest the general elections if the high command wanted him to take a plunge. He had said, "I will contest if the party's parliamentary board says so. My present task is to tour the state and strengthen the party." Inaugurating the BJP's election office in Aminjikarai here in the presence of the in-charges of the Lok Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu, Aravind Menon and P Sudhakar Reddy, and other senior leaders, he said the party machinery has already been activated and that the 2024 Lok Sabha elections would be "historic".

Recently, a few opinion polls indicated that the BJP would cross double-digit vote share in Tamil Nadu.

Notably, The Times Now-Matrize News survey predicted that the BJP would get 20.4 per cent votes in the next Lok Sabha polls. However, this vote share will not translate into seats as the opinion poll gave just one seat for the saffron party.

However, the vote percentage, unfortunately, will not translate into seats, if we have to go by The Times Now-Matrize News survey. The opinion poll claims that the ruling DMK or the INDIA bloc will secure 59.7 per cent votes while the BJP takes the second position by garnering 20.4 per cent votes.

Surprisingly, the AIADMK is being pushed to third place as it secures 16.3 per cent votes followed by others(3.6 per cent votes).

Ever since Annamalai was made the party chief, the BJP, which had got less than four per cent votes in earlier polls, has started gaining acceptance from a section of voters, political analysts say. This was reflected in the recent surveys.

However, the decision to back out from the Lok Sabha poll has taken people by surprise.

On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seto address a massive rally on February 25 in Tamil Nadu's Palladam in Tiruppur district, where state BJP chief K Annamalai's 'En Mann En Makkal' (My Land, My People) yatra will conclude.

The BJP state chief is set to conclude his tour of all 234 assembly constituencies in the state at Palladam Assembly constituency.

The yatra was flagged off by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in July 2023.