In what appears to be a sign of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) reaching out to the AIADMK, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, February 27, hailed AIADMK supremos MG Ramachandran (MGR) and J Jayalalithaa. Incidentally, the AIADMK snapped its ties with the BJP last year, after BJP Tamil Nadu president Annamalai remarked that the period of 1991 to 1996 in Tamil Nadu was the worst in terms of corruption. During the said period, Jayalalithaa was the Chief Minister.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of BJP Tamil Nadu president K Annamalai’s ‘En Mann, En Makkal’ (my land, my people) padayatra in Palladam near Tiruppur, Modi lashed out at the DMK for promoting ‘dynasty politics’ by invoking MGR and Jayalalithaa.
“DMK's dynasty politics is an insult to MGR, who came to power through good deeds,” Modi said, He added, “After MGR, it was Amma Jayalalithaa, who dedicated her whole life for the welfare of Tamil Nadu people. I was fortunate to have worked with her for a long time.”
“I visited Kandy in Sri Lanka, which is MGR’s birthplace. Today, I am at his 'karmabhoomi' [land of action] in Tamil Nadu. MGR broke the tradition of dynasty politics. He worked for quality education and healthcare, and that's why women respected him a lot,” the PM said.
Stating that Tamil Nadu will decide India’s future, he also recalled that he installed the “holy sengol” at the new Parliament building, as a mark of respect to the culture and heritage of the state. PM Modi also said that he led the 1991 Ekta Yatra from Kanniyakumari for two reasons: “to hoist tricolour at Srinagar's Lal Chowk and abrogate Article 370”. “These two aims have been achieved,” he stated.
Taking a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘shop of love’ remark, PM Modi said that people have decided to put a lock on their “shop of loot”. Rahul had said that he was opening “a shop of love in the market of hate” through the Bharat Jodo Yatra.
Modi further alleged that no leader in the INDIA bloc has talked about development and thinks only about their own families. “They have accepted defeat. But in states like Tamil Nadu, they are trying to ensure that they have the licence to loot,” he added.
Tamil Maanila Congress leader GK Vasan, whose party recently joined hands with BJP, BJP leaders L Murugan and K Annamalai were also present on the dais. Union Home Minister Amit Shah flagged off the ‘En Mann, En Makkal’ yatra, which is touted to be the party’s largest show of strength, in July 2023 from Rameshwaram.