Draft:K. Annamalai

K. Annamalai (born 4 June 1984) is an Indian politician who has been the president of the Tamil Nadu branch of the Bharatiya Janata Party since 2021. Prior to entering politics, Annamalai served as an Indian Police Service officer in Karnataka almost for a decade, holding various roles across different locations within the state.

Early life and education
Annamalai was born on 4 June 1984 in the village of Thottampatti in the Karur district of Tamil Nadu to an agricultural family. He attended schools in Karur, Namakkal and Coimbatore. He received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the PSG College of Technology in 2007 and a Master of Business Administration degree from the Indian Institute of Management Lucknow in 2010. Annamalai passed the Civil Services Examination in 2011.

Indian Police Service
Annamalai was selected as an Indian Police Service officer in the 2011 batch of the Karnataka cadre. From September 2013 to December 2014, he was the assistant superintendent of police in Karkala. Annamalai was the superintendent of police of the Udupi district from January 2015 to August 2016 and the Chikmagalur district from August 2016 to October 2018. From October 2018 to June 2019, he was the deputy commissioner of police of Bangalore South.

During his police service, Annamalai helped four police stations receive ISO 9001:2008 certification. In 2019, Annamalai left the IPS following the death of one of his officers.

Political career
Inspired by the ideologies of Narendra Modi and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Annamalai joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2020. In August 2020, he became the vice president of the party's branch in Karnataka.

In the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election, Annamalai stood as a BJP candidate for the Aravakurichi Assembly constituency. He was defeated by a margin of 24,816 votes to Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam candidate R. Elango. On 8 July 2021, he was appointed president of the Tamil Nadu BJP by party leader J. P. Nadda, becoming the youngest person to ever hold that position.

Annamalai made a series of visits to Sri Lanka in April 2022 and February 2023, meeting with lawmakers, Sri Lankan Tamil leaders, and other political figures. Reiterating the official stance of India, he argued for the implementation of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of Sri Lanka and for Indian sovereignty over Katchatheevu. He also voiced against the genocide against the Sri Lankan Tamils and also outlined the challenges faced by the Malayaha Tamils and their forced migrations.

In March 2023, Annamalai was booked by the Tamil Nadu Police under the Indian Penal Code for promoting disharmony, enmity or feelings of hatred between different groups on the grounds of religion, race, and language. The police registered a case against him after a tweet in which he linked the DMK to the spread of rumours about north Indian migrant workers being abused in Tamil Nadu. In July 2023, he launched the En Mann En Makkal campaign, which sought to "expose the DMK's alleged corruption and promote Prime Minister Narendra Modi's achievements in the state".

Annamalai was a candidate for the Lok Sabha in the Coimbatore constituency in the 2024 Indian general elections. He was defeated by DMK candidate Ganapathy Rajkumar by a margin of around 100,000 votes.