NEW DELHI: There is a buzz about Prime Minister Narendra Modi contesting the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Tamil Nadu as well as Vanarasi.
The proposal to contest from TN is apparently aimed at taking the BJP’s Mission South forward.
“It would not be surprising if Modi were to contest from TN as well. His Kashi-Tamil Sangamam initiative some months ago contributed to strengthening his connection with TN,” remarked senior political analyst P K D Nambiar. If Modi were to contest from Kanyakumari, the strong cultural links between Kashi and Kanyakumari would come into play.
Another source, who has a deep understanding of the BJP, recently said contesting from Kashi and Kanyakumari would be well suited for the PM’s stature. Speculation is also rife on the PM picking Coimbatore to enter the poll fray instead of Kanyakumari.
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The BJP has generally done well in Kanyakumari. Its candidate Pon Radhakrishnan was locked in a neck-and-neck fight against Vijaykumar of the Congress in the 2021 LS by-polls. While BJP polled 4,38,087 votes, the Congress got 5,76,037. As for Coimbatore, the BJP has an MLA from Coimbatore South, Vanathi Srinivasan. In the 2019 LS polls, BJP’s C P Radhakrishnan polled 3,92,007 votes against 5,71,150 by CPM’s P R Natarajan.