Lok Sabha election 2024: Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a rally in Tamil Nadu's Salem on Tuesday, following a well-attended roadshow in nearby Coimbatore the previous day. Leaders of all the parties involved in the NDA alliance in Tamil Nadu were seen at PM Modi's meeting in Salem. PMK's Dr S Ramadoss, his son Anbumani Ramadoss, former CM O Panneerselvam who rebelled in AIADMK, AMMK leader and TTV Dhinakaran, and TMC leader G K Moopanar were present. This time BJP has formed its own alliance with smaller parties against both the Dravidian parties.
PM Modi address
Prime Minister Narendra Modi gets emotional as he remembered former State BJP president late K.N. Lakshmanan & his contribution towards the expansion of BJP in the state.
Attacking Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his 'Shakti' remark, PM Modi said, "INDI alliance deliberately insult Hindu Dharma & every statement against Hindu Dharma is well thought of. Congress-DMK INDI alliance never speak against other religions. But they do not take a second to insult Hindu Dharma..."
"Mariamman yahan ki Shakti hai. In Tamil Nadu Kanchi Kamakshi is 'Shakti', Madurai Meenakshi is 'Shakti'...Congress, DMK & INDI alliance says they will destory this (Shakti)," he added.
"You all are witness to the kind of behaviour INDI alliance does with women. When former state CM J. Jayalalithaa was alive you all know how DMK leaders behaved with her. This is DMK's real face," he said.
PM Modi further said that the DMK and Congress are two sides of the same coin. "DMK and Congress means- Big corruption & one family rule. When the country got rid of Congress, the country reached 5G technology. But in Tamil Nadu DMK is running its own 5G- one family's fifth generation to have control over Tamil Nadu," he added.
PM Modi said that one of the two defence corridors is being built in Tamil Nadu. "NDA government is making two defence corridors in the country. One of them is being built in Tamil Nadu," he said.
Welcoming PMK leader S Ramadoss to the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), PM Modi said that NDA's mission in Tamil Nadu has got new energy with PMK's entry.
PMK-NDA pact
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday (March 19) finalised seat-sharing deal with the Dr S Ramadoss-headed Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) in Tamil Nadu for the Lok Sabha elections in the state next month.
The BJP has allotted 10 seats to the regional party. The development comes a day after the PMK, a potent political force in northern Tamil Nadu, decided to join the BJP-led NDA. The move came as a setback for the AIADMK, the principal opposition party, which was anticipating an alliance with the PMK.
With the April 19 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, the BJP has intensified its focus on the southern state, aiming to secure as many as possible of the 39 constituencies as part of its 'mission 400' seats in the upcoming elections.
Modi's recent public rally in Kanniyakumari and his frequent visits to Tamil Nadu in recent months reflect the party's concerted efforts to strengthen its presence in the region.
Also Read: Lok Sabha Elections 2024: PMK gets 10 seats to contest in Tamil Nadu under BJP-led NDA
