Duraisamy new vice-president of State BJP

Chennai

Former DMK leader VP Duraisamy, who recently joined the BJP was elevated as vice-president. Senior BJP leaders Vanathi Srinivasan, Nainar Nagendran and M Muruganandam, who were once front runners for the post of BJP state president are now state vice-presidents. State treasurer SR Sekar will continue to hold the post.

Former Madras High Advocates Association president Paul Kanagaraj will now head the party’s legal wing. The party also named new district presidents for Coimbatore, Tiruchy, The Nilgiris, Salem and Cuddalore districts. Former AIADMK MP Sasikala Pushpa will now be a national council member.

Actress Namitha who had recently joined the party was also given a post in the party’s state executive committee. Actors Madhuvanthi Arun, Gautami, ‘Kutti’ Padmini are also now part of the state executive committee. The party also expanded its media wing and the district monitoring committees.

According to the statement released by Murugan at Kamalalayam, BJP headquarters, the BJP will have ten state vice-presidents, four state general secretaries and nine state secretaries, which is something unusual in any Dravidian party. KT Raghavan, GK Selvakumar, R Srinivasan and Karu Nagarajan have been named state general secretaries. P Kanagasabapathy, who was state intellectual wing president, has also been elevated as vice president.

Actor Gayathri Raghuram is the new president of arts and culture wing. Tada Periyasamy is appointed as a national executive committee member. Murugan also announced the list of spokespersons to interact with media and participate in news debates. Suba Nagarajan, D Kuppuramu, MS Ramalingam, M Subramanian, C Narasimhan, SK Karvendhan, Thirupathi Narayanan, and K Kanimozhi are appointed as party’s state spokespersons, the president said.

“BJP needs a strong leader to counter the DMK and the AIADMK. Though the former president Tamilisai kept the party alive through media limelight, Murugan is working slow and steady. He is bringing more muscle at the grass-root level and we are hoping for some migration from the AIADMK and the DMK,” a party functionary in South Chennai said.