Chennai: Even as the BJP’s central leadership appointed Union Minister Piyush Goyal the new election in-charge for Tamil Nadu, state party chief Nainar Nagendran is camped in Delhi with a constituency-wise assessment of winnability of seats that the party could demand from the AIADMK in the NDA alliance for the upcoming 2026 assembly election.
According to sources in BJP, the list, built on the party’s performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, highlights seats where the BJP or its allies finished second.
Of the 23 constituencies the BJP contested in the Lok Sabha elections, it finished second in nine constituencies—Coimbatore, Nilgiris, Chennai South, Chennai Central, Tirunelveli, Kanyakumari, Tiruvallur, Vellore, and Madurai. On the other hand, its allies PMK and DMDK secured second place in Dharmapuri and Virudhunagar constituencies, respectively.
BJP state president Nainar Nagendran who has met Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP president J.P. Nadda in Delhi, has submitted a list of 65 constituencies that the BJP could demand from the AIADMK for the 2026 assembly elections, sources in the BJP told ThePrint.
“It is in this backdrop that Piyush Goyal has been appointed as the election in-charge for the state. Because, in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, it was because of him that BJP was able to contest in about five seats and he is said to have a good rapport with the AIADMK leadership here,” a senior functionary in the BJP told ThePrint.
The party’s central leadership is expected to begin the discussion with AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami and finalise the numbers, before getting into the constituency choices.
In the 2021 Tamil Nadu Assembly election, the BJP contested 20 seats and won 4, securing a statewide vote share of 2.62 percent. The AIADMK contested 179 seats, and won 66, recording a vote share of 33.29 percent. But BJP leaders argue that the party’s independent vote surge in several Lok Sabha constituencies in 2024 strengthens its case for a larger footprint in 2026.
Focus on western & southern districts
Sources privy to the report submitted to the national leadership told ThePrint that of the 65 constituencies identified, 40 constituencies are part of the Lok Sabha constituencies where the BJP performed well and came second in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
“First priority is our traditional strongholds in Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli and Coimbatore districts. We have suggested to the party leadership that in Kanyakumari district, Colachel, Killiyoor, Kanyakumari, and Nagercoil assembly constituencies are favourable for the party,” the source said.
“In Tirunelveli, we have asked for three assembly constituencies, since it is the home turf of our state leader. Similarly, in Coimbatore, we have asked for six assembly constituencies, namely Coimbatore North, Coimbatore South, Kavundampalayam, Palladam, Sulur, and Singanallur,” the source privy to the report told ThePrint.
Apart from the south and west of Tamil Nadu, the BJP has also sought eight of the 16 assembly seats in Chennai, where AIADMK is also losing influence since the 2021 assembly election.
“Virugambakkam, Velachery, Mylapore and T. Nagar are potential seats where our partymen have been doing groundwork since the 2021 assembly elections and all these constituencies come under Chennai South Lok Sabha seat where the party’s former state president Tamilisai Soundararajan secured about 27 percent of the votes, pushing AIADMK to third place,” the source privy to the report told ThePrint.
When asked about it, a BJP leader who did not want to be named said that they do not want to reveal the numbers and the constituencies so soon.
“Everything will be handled by the party’s national and state leadership. It will be discussed with the alliance partners and we will come out with workable numbers and constituencies,” he told ThePrint.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)