An official statement from the saffron party’s state unit said that the BJP respects the mandate delivered by voters in the Assembly election.
Also Read | Tamil Nadu: VCK to announce stand on supporting TVK on Saturday, says Party chief Thirumavalavan
Nagendran further acknowledged that the BJP had managed to secure only one seat and said the verdict did not give the party a mandate to participate in government formation.
“The BJP is committed to the welfare and progress of the people of Tamil Nadu and has participated in the election process with the same fervour. However, the election results are gracefully accepted by our party, and we feel that the people of Tamil Nadu have not given any mandate for the BJP to form the government,” he said.
He also stated that the party would stay away from any post-poll political negotiations or attempts to stitch together a coalition.
Also Read | Tamil Nadu: TVK cadres stage protest outside Lok Bhavan; demand Governor invite Vijay to form govt“We sincerely respect the will and the mandate of the people of Tamil Nadu and do not wish to align our party in any attempt to form the new government in the state of Tamil Nadu. Therefore, we do not wish any active participation in this process and will not vote for any party in the attempt to form the government,” he added.
TVK eyes majority amid intense political negotiations
Meanwhile, actor-politician Vijay and his party TVK, which emerged with 108 seats in the fractured verdict, have intensified efforts to gather support from smaller parties and independents to cross the majority mark in the 234-member Assembly.
The Congress, which has broken away from the DMK after the election outcome, has extended conditional support to Vijay’s party. With Congress’ five MLAs backing TVK, the alliance tally has risen to 113, though it is still short of the required 118 seats needed to form the government.
Attention has now shifted to the Thol Thirumavalavan-led Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), which holds two seats. Thirumavalavan said the party’s high-level committee would meet later in the day to decide its stand after receiving a request from TVK for support.
At the same time, both the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Communist Party of India held separate executive meetings to deliberate on extending support to Vijay. The two Left parties have two seats each.
If the VCK, CPI(M), CPI and Congress eventually come together behind TVK, Vijay would comfortably cross the majority threshold and could form the government in his first electoral outing.
