Leaders like Jana Krishnamurthy & Atal Bihari Vajpayee were key participants from BJP. Not to forget MDMK & PMK who were passive listeners.

Recalling the decisive statesmanship displayed by Dr. Kalaignar Karunanidhi during coalition formations in New Delhi, DMK Treasurer M. K. Stalin on April 9, 2014, detailed the historic circumstances surrounding the NDA government in 1999. Stalin pointed out that when the alliance was established, towering national BJP leaders including Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Party President Jana Krishnamurthy engaged in rigorous deliberations with the DMK. In those high-stakes negotiations, the DMK firmly asserted its Dravidian principles, compelling the BJP to shelve its contentious ideological agenda and agree to a secular common minimum program that prioritized state autonomy and social welfare. He observed that while the DMK actively protected regional and secular interests, other regional partners like the MDMK and PMK acted as passive listeners, completely lacking the ideological conviction or moral strength to negotiate terms. Stalin contrasted the DMK's historic assertiveness with the complete capitulation of today's NDA allies, who had unconditionally accepted the BJP's right-wing manifesto without uttering a single word of protest. He affirmed that only the DMK possesses the courage to defend Tamil rights at the Centre.