BJP’s newly-appointed Tamil Nadu state president, Nainar Nagenthran, launched a scathing attack on the DMK government on Monday, accusing Chief Minister MK Stalin of being hesitant to take action against Forest Minister K. Ponmudy. Speaking to the press after paying tribute to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar on his birth anniversary in Tirunelveli, Nagenthran said Stalin’s inaction over Ponmudy’s controversial and vulgar remarks about women and certain sects of Hinduism shows the CM’s fear of the senior DMK leader.Nagenthran called upon the people of Tamil Nadu, particularly women, to remember this moment when they head to the ballot box in the 2026 assembly elections. “Women are the backbone of every household. If people like Ponmudy are allowed to go unpunished, it is a reflection of the government’s failure to uphold decency and respect. It is the people’s duty to respond with their votes,” he said, urging every household to act with responsibility during elections.
Sharing a personal memory, Nagenthran recalled that it was on the same day in 2001 that he had met former Chief Minister and AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa in Chennai, who gave him his first electoral opportunity from the Tirunelveli Assembly constituency. “Now, after 25 years in public life, I have been given another great responsibility by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP National President JP Nadda, and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to lead the BJP in Tamil Nadu,” he stated.
In his tribute to Dr. Ambedkar, Nagenthran called him the principal architect of the Indian Constitution and a visionary social reformer. He criticised the Congress-led UPA government for not giving Ambedkar the respect he deserved, claiming it was only after the BJP came to power that his memorials were properly renovated and maintained. He further demanded that the cages placed around statues of Ambedkar and other iconic leaders be removed. “It appears as if these leaders have been imprisoned. This is not how we honour their legacy,” he remarked.
When asked about the political alliance dynamics in Tamil Nadu, Nagenthran asserted that the BJP and AIADMK had entered into a mutually respectful alliance without any friction. “There is no stalemate. Both parties are united in our goal to bring change to Tamil Nadu,” he concluded.