Tamil Nadu elections 2026: Why OPS is running out of race and steam

O Panneerselvam, better known as OPS, the once-trusted lieutenant of former chief minister of Tamil Nadu J Jayalalithaa, seems to be heading toward the sunset of his political journey. If recent weeks are anything to go by, even his most die-hard supporters of the former CM are quietly drifting away, many joining rival parties like the DMK and TVK, leaving his camp looking eerily empty and distant from its former clout.

Political insiders now say that with AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) firmly shutting the door on OPS’s return to the party, the only lifeline left might be a spot for him in the NDA alliance. That would be quite a turnaround from his earlier days of influence.

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At a press meet in Madurai on January 27, Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) leader TTV Dhinakaran revealed that BJP leaders had offered a route into the NDA for OPS, and that he had acted as a messenger between them. “OPS is a senior politician. I don’t have authority here, but in a friendly way I acted as a messenger. I told him he should be part of the alliance that would bring back Amma’s regime. He has to decide now,” Dhinakaran told reporters.

OPS’ AIADMK career

Let’s rewind a bit. OPS joined the AIADMK in 1973 and built a sturdy career on the strength of local support, especially from the Thevar community. He was elected from Bodinayakanur in Theni district three times and also from Periyakulam twice, but the margins tell an interesting story.

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In the 2021 state elections, OPS managed to hold Bodinayakanur, but it was far from a landslide. He beat DMK’s Thanga Tamil Selvan by only about 7,676 votes, a modest victory in an electorate of over 2 lakh voters. Back in 2016, official records show OPS winning Bodinayakanur with a margin that was nearly 7.7% of the votes, again a solid but not overwhelming figure.

Contrast that with the period under Jayalalithaa’s heyday, when AIADMK victories often came with wide margins, and one can see how OPS’s electoral punch has shrunk over time. During the 2001, 2006 and 2011 elections, the winning margin was above 15 per cent when Jayalalithaa was active.

Jayalalithaa’s demise

After Jayalalithaa died in 2016, OPS’s stature began to slip. He briefly became chief minister for about two months, only to be sidelined soon after. When EPS took charge from 2017 to 2021, OPS was made deputy chief minister, but his influence steadily waned amid strategic missteps, delayed decisions, and weak organisational control.

Though he tried to take on EPS and revive his clout in early 2017, his efforts fizzled out. His constant claim that reunifying AIADMK was his singular goal did little to rally the ground. Instead, many cadres simply walked away.

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The recent exodus has been striking. Long-time loyalists like R. Vaithilingam, a former MLA and one of OPS’s closest aides, crossed over to the DMK, a blow that signals just how fragile his support has become. Others, such as Manoj Pandian and J.C.D. Prabhakar have also moved to rival camps, while Kunnam R.T. Ramachandran from Perambalur quit politics altogether.

Leadership flaws

One former AIADMK MLA who defected told The Federal that OPS’s indecisiveness wasn’t just a personal flaw, it was something that dragged down his entire camp. “Panneerselvam remains in a constant state of confusion. Even after many of us left, he failed to realise his indecisive nature is the core problem,” he said.

Analyst R. Bhagwan Singh said OPS wasn’t beaten by rivals so much as undermined by his own leadership failures. “He never fully capitalised on opportunities to cement his role after Jayalalithaa’s death, whether within AIADMK or with potential partners like the BJP. At the same time, EPS has managed to keep the core of AIADMK intact and even work with T.T.V. Dhinakaran in the NDA alliance, yet he has repeatedly refused to accommodate OPS. That refusal speaks volumes about how far the once-powerful OPS has fallen in Tamil Nadu’s fast-shifting political chessboard,’’ he told The Federal.

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When reporters in Madurai asked OPS on Tuesday (January 27) whether he would join the NDA, he kept it vague as ever. “My only demand is that all factions of AIADMK should unite, whether I will join the alliance, that decision remains with God,” he said.