Reporter's diary: Needless political brouhaha over Annan

CHENNAI: Now, it’s the turn of ousted AIADMK leader O Panneerselvam’s supporters to lock horns with the BJP on social media. OPS’s staunch supporters hit out at BJP State leader K Annamalai for his statement, thanking both OPS and Edappadi K Palaniswami on the Erode East Constituency bypoll.

While Annamalai called EPS as interim general secretary and thanked him for fielding a candidate to take on their ideological opponent candidate, he simply ended thanking “Annan (Brother)” Panneerselvam for withdrawing his candidate. This did not go down well among OPS supporters, who began tweeting against him.

OPS’s supporters in Sivaganga had also passed a resolution against the BJP leader and condemned him for terming EPS as interim general secretary and defaming their party coordinator OPS. Using an adage ‘Blood is thicker than water’, former MLA A Subburathinam in a TV debate made a veiled remark that they (Annamalai and EPS) belong to the same community. Hence, he was endorsing EPS.

Social media platforms were abuzz with the war of words over the issue, prompting BJP social media head CT Nirmal Kumar to appeal to active BJP supporters and cadres to abstain from such heated arguments with functionaries of the alliance party.

This was not the first time. A few days ago, EPS supporter and AIADMK’s IT wing leader Singai S Ramachandran was harsh on BJP leaders, particularly on BJP National General Secretary, for intervening in AIADMK’s internal issues. He asked them to mind their own business in a tweet.