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In the presence of Union Home Minister and BJP election supremo Amit Shah, AIADMK General Secretary and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, the two parties announced their National Democratic Alliance for the 2026 Assembly polls in the southern Indian state.

Also read: BJP slams Stalin, accuses him of insulting PM Modi by skipping Tamil Nadu event

"We have full faith in NDA winning Tamil Nadu. We will fight the election under the leadership of Palaniswami, and then form a coalition government," said Amit Shah at an NDA press meet in Chennai. With at least 11 months to go for the Assembly polls, smaller parties are gradually expected to join hands with this alliance. 

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After having fought and lost the 2021 Tamil Nadu assembly polls under the NDA alliance, both AIADMK and BJP went their separate ways and fought the 2024 parliamentary polls alone. In 2021, the DMK under MK Stalin came to power, defeating the incumbent AIADMK. Outperforming the 2021 state poll results, DMK and its allies secured all seats in Tamil Nadu in the 2024 parliamentary elections. The then estranged allies have now joined hands to take on the incumbent DMK-led combine.

Attacking the DMK, Home Minister Amit Shah referred to the deteriorating law and order situation in Tamil Nadu and the ill-treatment of women and Dalits (backward communities). 

He also alleged there were a plethora of scams under the DMK government. "Chief Minister Stalin and his son Udhayanidhi have to be accountable and must answer the people of Tamil Nadu, regarding the various scams in their tenure. It includes liquor scam, energy sector scam, ELCOT scam, sand mining scam, transport scam, money laundering scam, free dhoti scam, nutrition kit scam, cash-for-jobs scam," he said. 

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The DMK has been attacking the BJP on the contentious centre-state issues of the three-language formula, delimitation, and the NEET exam. Shah claimed that these were diversion tactics of the DMK government. 

Via a social media post, Amit Shah also confirmed the impending change of guard in the Tamil Nadu BJP. The post read, "The Tamil Nadu BJP has received a nomination for the post of state President only from Nainar Nagendran."

"As the President of the Tamil Nadu BJP unit, K. Annamalai has made commendable accomplishments. The BJP will leverage Annamalai's organisational skills in the party's national framework," he added.