OPINION | Modi's southern push: Will DMK, Left fortresses fall in TN, Kerala?
The icing on the cake was his rally in Tamil Nadu's Madurantakam, 87 km from Chennai, where on the dais sat AIADMK's ex-CM Edappadi K Palaniswami, AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran and PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss. In Tamil Nadu, it is the AIADMK which leads the National Democratic Alliance.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched BJP's election campaign in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
In Kerala, he first launched several Amrit Bharat trains and Swanidhi Credit Card with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan praising him, then took out a roadshow to his NDA rally in Thiruvananthapuram, where he lambasted both the Left Front and Congress.
The icing on the cake was his rally in Tamil Nadu's Madurantakam, 87 km from Chennai, where on the dais sat AIADMK's ex-CM Edappadi K Palaniswami, AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran and PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss. In Tamil Nadu, it is the AIADMK which leads the National Democratic Alliance.
Modi was unsparing in his criticism of ruling DMK, describing it as CMC (corruption, mafia, crime) government. He said, "the countdown for DMK's exit has begun and NDA will come to power in Tamil Nadu."
He told the huge rally, "you gave DMK majority twice, but they broke the trust of the people... Women are now unsafe and corruption is rife."
Modi referred to the recent controversy over lighting the ceremonial Lord Murugan's Karthigai Deepam atop Thiruparankundram hill in Madurai. He accused DMK government of opposing religious traditions and defying court orders only for vote bank politics. "DMK is the biggest enemy of Tamil culture", Modi said.
In Kerala, Modi lashed out at the Left Front government alleging that even God's gold ornaments were not spared by thieves in Sabarimala shrine. He promised to send the thieves to jail if the NDA comes to power in Kerala.
Though Modi claimed that NDA would form governments in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, the ground reality is that BJP's voter base is not wide. In both states, it is not even the number four party.
BJP has joined hands with several smaller parties in both the states to give DMK, Congress and Left Front a fight in the forthcoming assembly elections.
In Tamil Nadu, Palaniswami-led AIADMK has a good base in the west, Anbumani Ramadoss' PMK has a good base in north, Dhinakaran's AMMK is strong in the south, and GK Vasan's Tamil Maanila Congress and some other smaller parties are active in central Tamil Nadu.
Modi is trying to forge a social arithmetic by bringing together parties having good base in regions and communities, to give the DMK-led alliance a strong fight.
In the past, DMK and AIADMK never won elections alone. They had to forge alliances with smaller parties. Modi is applying this same formula to challenge DMK.
For his rally in Tamil Nadu, Modi selected Vasant Panchami as an auspicious day to challenge DMK for its anti-Sanatan policy and to raise the Deepam controversy.
Modi has set the tone for BJP campaign by highlighting issues relating to Tamil Nadu's dynastic politics, corruption and anti-Sanatan stand. DMK may face problems on these scores when the assembly campaign will reach its peak.
In Kerala, Modi banked on his party's recent victory in Thiruvananthapuram corporation elections. He reminded voters how BJP first won the Ahmedabad municipal elections in 1987, and till today the party is ruling Gujarat without a break. He predicted the same for Kerala in his speech.
Modi also raised the Sabarimala gold theft issue and vowed to punish the thieves if NDA comes to power in Kerala.
BJP may have won Thiruvananthapuram municipal elections, but the ground reality is: the Left Front and Congress have deep roots among voters across Kerala. Though the RSS has worked hard across the state, it is difficult to predict whether BJP alone can defeat LDF and UDF in Kerala.
BJP central leadership realises this and that is why BJP has joined hands with several small parties in Kerala too.
One is a party called Twenty20 launched by Sabu Jacob, owner of Kitex Garments, who is opposing the Left Front. Another small party is BDJS (Bharath Dharma Jana Sena) led by OBC leader Tushar Vellapalli. BJP is banking its hopes on this alliance.
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