Tongues wag in AIADMK as Shah talks to Sengottaiyan days after meet with EPS
Unconfirmed yet reliable news is that Shah gave an hour's audience to a sulking Sengottaiyan, who has been upset with Palaniswami, and discussed the poll prospects of an NDA alliance comprising AIADMK.;
CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu BJP, which has been struggling to stitch an alliance with major political parties can heave a sigh of relief, thanks to Union Home minister Amit Shah, the undisputed “chief poll strategist” of the BJP, who has successfully opened multiple communication channels within the AIADMK. After his closed-door meeting with AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in Delhi last week, he again ruffled the party here by meeting KA Sengottaiyan, another senior leader of the party.
Unconfirmed yet reliable news is that Shah gave an hour's audience to a sulking Sengottaiyan, who has been upset with Palaniswami, and discussed the poll prospects of an NDA alliance comprising AIADMK.
"Our party central leadership is working on strategies, and several AIADMK leaders are responding positively. The recent meeting between EPS and Shah panned out in uncertain ways, with EPS harbouring several reservations,” quipped a senior BJP leader in Delhi, who confirmed that Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, too, had interacted with Sengottaiyan, who has been with the party since the days of founder MGR.
“On the day, when CM MK Stalin was hosting chief ministers and pan India political leaders on the delimitation controversy, Sitharaman was in Chennai gathering inputs on multiple issues within the AIADMK,” recalled another TN BJP functionary.
Before leaving for Delhi, the Finance minister confirmed to the state BJP functionaries about alliance strategies being worked out by the party’s central leadership, the functionary said, confirming that the BJP leadership had told EPS about a united AIADMK comprising ousted leaders like VK Sasikala and O Panneerselvam.
“AIADMK workers are upset with Sengottaiyan’s meeting with Shah and Sitharaman. Such discreet meetings do not suit his stature. EPS has political guts, which Sengottaiyan and OPS lack,” said an AIADMK senior wishing not to be named. AIADMK alliance and seat sharing should be discussed in TN and not in Delhi, the party functionary added.