Expelled DMK leader KP Ramalingam, who is a staunch supporter of MK Alagiri, will be joining the Central ruling BJP on Saturday in the presence of senior party leaders and the development has put the DMK leaders in shock as he is the third notable DMK leader to join BJP after VP Duraisamy and Ku Ka Selvam. 

The high-level political drama has come at a high time when MK Alagiri has been surfaced with speculations that he will be launching a political party and will join the BJP alliance ahead of the state assembly polls. KP Ramalingam will be joining the BJP when Union Home Minister Amit Shah is visiting Chennai with the well-packed agenda of working over the strategies for the Tamil Nadu BJP to face the polls next year. 

BJP has issued the official statement in which the Central ruling party has said that the expelled DMK leader will be joining the party. According to reports, on the morning hours of Saturday, KP Ramalingam has met BJP National Secretary CT Ravi in Chennai and put his interest to meet Amit Shah, which sparked speculations that the DMK leader will be shaking hand with the rival and getting prepared to work against the DMK in the upcoming assembly polls. 

KP Ramalingam has observed close ties with Stalin's elder brother MK Alagiri, who was expelled from the party in 2014 when the party had witnessed a political dispute between the brothers in taking over the leadership of the party from DMK patriarch Karunanidhi. Recently, MK Alagiri had made headlines across the state that he is going to launch the political party against the rise of his brother MK Stalin and there were speculations that Alagiri would join the BJP alliance. 

However, Alagiri had denied the speculations that he will be joining BJP, and days after his denial, one of his supporters KP Ramalingam will now be joining the BJP. Ramalingam had served as the secretary of DMK's Agricultural wing and he had also served as the Rajya Sabha MP from DMK for one term and when Alagiri had a stronghold in the party, Ramalingam had seen steady growth in the party. 

When Alagiri was expelled from the party, Ramalingam had remained in the party and he had stirred intra-party furor over his remarks against the party leaders. When DMK President MK Stalin had pressed the Tamil Nadu government to convene the all-party meeting to discuss about the COVID-19 outbreak and the state's response, Ramalingam had directly flayed Stalin for demanding an all-party meeting and stood against the party's stand. 

As the sequel of his dissent against the party's leadership, Ramalingam was recently expelled from the party and his primary membership was revoked and following the expulsion, Ramalingam had turned to be a staunch critic of MK Stalin. When Amit Shah's visit was confirmed, it was expected that there could be an episode where DMK members will join BJP in the presence of the Home Minister and as Ramalingam is ready to join BJP, the reports say that the expelled leader will be inducted to the party in the presence of Amit Shah. 

Earlier, then DMK Deputy General Secretary VP Duraisamy and DMK MLA Ku Ka Selvam were expelled from the DMK and they both had joined BJP after unleashing a scathing attack against MK Stalin and the party's family politics. When the opposition DMK has been getting ready for the upcoming assembly polls, Ramalingam has shocked the party after switching side to the rival. As Ramalingam's joining in the BJP has been confirmed, it has been speculated that whether Alagiri is the next to join the Central ruling party following one of his supporters.

The reports close to the development say that the BJP will be tasking Ramalingam to cover Alagiri and the rest of his supporters and bring them to the party which will further weaken Stalin's stronghold in Madurai and other southern districts ahead of the polls as the intra-party tussle and dispute could possibly divide the party when it has been hoping to take over the reign in the state.