Reports suggest BJP offered K Annamalai a Rajya Sabha seat before his resignation
June 5, 2026: Former Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai resigned from the party’s primary membership on Friday, a move accepted by BJP national president Nitin Nabin. The resignation is being viewed as a significant political development in Tamil Nadu and a setback for the BJP. Amid the developments, reports claimed that the party had offered Annamalai a Rajya Sabha nomination for the upcoming elections, but he reportedly declined the offer. However, no official confirmation has been issued by the BJP regarding the claim.
According to media reports, the BJP had considered sending Annamalai to the Rajya Sabha through one of the four seats falling vacant in Andhra Pradesh. After he allegedly turned down the proposal, his name did not feature in the BJP’s first list of 11 Rajya Sabha candidates. Reports also suggest that the BJP subsequently withdrew its claim to the Andhra Pradesh seat that was expected to be allotted to the party under the NDA seat-sharing arrangement.
During discussions among NDA allies, attended by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, it was initially decided that two Rajya Sabha seats would go to the Telugu Desam Party, while one each would be allotted to the BJP and the Jana Sena Party. Following Annamalai’s resignation, the BJP reportedly gave up its claim to the seat, which has now gone to the TDP, altering the alliance’s original seat-sharing formula.