The BJP in Puducherry, which is made up of elements from the Congress and regional parties, is pulling out all the stops to become the major player post-election in the Union Territory for the first time. If it succeeds, it will be a big achievement for the party, which has been struggling to make inroads into Kerala and Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry itself, where it is part of a coalition arrangement with the All India N.R. Congress (AINRC). It has also allied with a new political party launched three months ago by the lottery king Santiago Martin’s son, Jose Charles Martin.

The BJP, with its allies, plans to contest 14 of the Assembly 30 seats. Of this, it will likely give a few seats to the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), which has been reduced to a minor party, and to Charles’ party. Chief Minister N. Rangasamy, founder and president of the AINRC, is deeply uncomfortable with the presence of the much-raided Charles Martin in the alliance. He has so far refused to publicly endorse Charles’ party, the Latchiya Jananayaga Katchi (LJK).

Charles Martin, who has enormous resources at his disposal, launched the party after his brother-in-law, Aadhav Arjuna, joined the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam floated by the actor Vijay. From time to time, his social media account targets Aadhav Arjuna, indicating that his foray into politics itself was a result of a clash with his brother-in-law.

Deep pockets go a long way in a democracy. In fact, Santiago Martin’s wife is with the AIADMK, and in the past, during election time, he has made financial contributions to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), the Trinamool Congress, and the BJP.

When the LJK was formed, Charles declared that his party would contest all the seats. But as time went by, he started looking for allies. The DMK and the Congress have accused him of being the BJP’s “B” team and claimed that he was in the fray to divide the opposition votes. It is therefore all the more puzzling that Charles was roped in by the BJP. Charles can win one constituency on his own, namely Kamaraj Nagar, and expects that another party leader will also make it to the Assembly. In a House of 30, even 2 members can be a decisive number in the event of a close fight between the main alliances.

Charles has declared that he is “ever ready to serve the people”. He has articulated a vision for Puducherry, called Vision 2050. In a post on X, he said: “Puducherry has always been a rare fusion of Tamil soul and French urbanity. Now that heritage is becoming the blueprint for our future.”

Going by the media coverage he generates in Puducherry, it would appear as if he were one of the tallest leaders in the Union Territory.

BJP’s strength

As for the BJP, even before any party candidate has filed a nomination, it already has three seats in the Assembly. This is because the Central government has the power to nominate three people to the Puducherry Assembly. In the outgoing Assembly, the BJP had six elected members and added three via the nomination route.

From the time the BJP assumed power in New Delhi in 2014, it has appointed as MLAs even those candidates who were defeated in the Assembly elections held previously. The Madras High Court and Supreme Court rulings have made it clear that the nominated MLAs enjoy the same powers as the elected MLAs. In short, the BJP manages to have 3 MLAs in a House of 33 without any effort.

For a simple majority, the BJP needs the support of 17 MLAs. Along with the three nominated MLAs, it needs the support of 14 MLAs. And that is exactly the number the party plans to contest in the alliance arrangement with the AINRC.

The BJP’s access to seemingly limitless resources is a huge plus in Puducherry. Politicians here are known to be exceedingly liberal in giving freebies ahead of an election. It is an open secret that money is distributed, and everyone, barring the Election Commission of India, is aware of the massive cash-for-votes practice.

Puducherry has enclaves all over south India: Mahe, south of Thalassery, in Kerala; Karaikkal, just north of Nagapattinam, in Tamil Nadu; and Yanam in the north bank of the Godavari in Andhra Pradesh. Mahe is over 600 km from Puducherry, Karaikkal just over 130 km, and Yanam nearly 800 km away.

In 2021, the AINRC had 10 MLAs and the BJP 6. With three nominated MLAs, the BJP’s tally rose to nine. In Puducherry, crossing party lines is never a problem. Three of the key members of the current ruling BJP were with the Congress earlier. Ministers A. Namassivayam, E. Theeppainthan, and A. Johnkumar are all former senior Congress leaders. A. Johnkumar’s son Richards Johnkumar joined the BJP along with his father in 2021. P.M.L. Kalyanasundaram left the AINRC in 2021 to join the BJP.

Two of the three nominated MLAs are also from other political parties: V.P. Ramalingam was with the Congress while K. Venkatesan, who won a byelection in 2019, was with the DMK. In June 2025, all the nominated MLAs resigned on instructions from the BJP.

Rangasamy’s pragmatism

“N.R. [Rangasamy] is a practical leader,” said a supporter of the AINRC leader. “He reads the situation, pushes for what is possible, and has thus managed to stay relevant in Puducherry for such as long time,” he added.

These words have added significance in the context of Rangasamy suddenly seeking full Statehood for Puducherry. Also, local media have been highlighting Rangasamy’s unhappiness over the lack of response from the BJP. There is also speculation that he is considering pulling out of the alliance and fighting alongside Vijay in the coming election.

It is a fact that Rangasamy has a surprisingly good equation with Vijay. The actor chose Puducherry for his first campaign address after the Karur stampede, which killed 41 people in September 2025. It is also well known that Rangasamy makes tall demands just ahead of an election, muddies the waters, and then goes quiet. In 2021 too, in the run-up to the election, he refused to give in to the demands by the BJP for additional seats but eventually agreed to all of them.

A fascinating recent study by Pondicherry University found that voters do not care much for the party or the symbol; they focus on individuals and how much they are able to deliver to the people. The study, titled “Report on Voter Preferences: Party Symbols versus Candidate Profiles in Electoral Choices”, noted that Puducherry voters were pragmatic and overlooked controversies involving candidates, looking only at results on the ground.

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