BJP’s rally will start the countdown for DMK’s exit: Nainar Nagendran
Launching a statewide yatra from the temple town of Madurai ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections, Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagendran on Sunday predicted that the countdown had begun for the ouster of the ruling DMK and the formation of an NDA government with AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) as Chief Minister.
“From now, the countdown has started for the ouster of the DMK government. The NDA will wrest power and form the government with EPS as Chief Minister,” he told reporters before commencing his mass outreach campaign, titled ‘Yatra for Tamil Nadu to Hold Its Head High.’
As a prominent face of the dominant OBC Thevar community within the saffron party, this is his first mass contact programme since assuming charge as state party president in April, succeeding K Annamalai.
Listing the failures of the MK Stalin-led DMK government, Nagendran alleged that the safety of women and children had become precarious, with sexual offences on the rise due to a deteriorating law and order situation. “Even sanitation workers protesting peacefully in a democratic manner are being punished, and this is a government under judicial scrutiny,” he said.
Nagendran also squarely blamed the police and the Chief Minister for the Karur stampede that occurred during actor Vijay’s rally. “Who is to be blamed? The responsibility lies with the police and the Chief Minister, who holds the Home portfolio,” he stated, adding, “It is ironic that a financial relief of ₹10 lakh is announced for hooch deaths but only ₹2 lakh for deaths in road accidents.”
Union Minister of State L Murugan and former BJP state president K Annamalai attended the public meeting prior to the commencement of the yatra, while the AIADMK was represented by local MLA V Rajan Chellappa.