CHENNAI: A day after People’s Welfare Front and the DMK wooed DMDK founder Vijayakant to be part of their alliances to face the ensuing Assembly elections, it was the turn of the BJP to sing the tune “Captain is with us and he will be with us.”
Responding to queries of mediapersons here, Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan sought to downplay the invitations extended by the PWF and DMK to Vijayakant to become their ally. “Such developments are bound to happen in politics. But as far as Vijayakant is concerned, he won’t go to any other alliance. He is with us and he will be with us,” he said.
Asked whether the BJP had been left in the lurch in the political arena in Tamil Nadu, Radhakrishnan said “You should pose this question to those who have been left in lurch.”
Meanwhile, the saffron party held a conclave of senior office-bearers attended by national organising secretary Ramlalji, Muralidhar Rao, who is in charge of Tamil Nadu, Pon Radhakrishnan and State president Tamilisai Soundararajan. Preparations for the Assembly elections and the organisational elections in the State unit as well as political developments in the State were discussed during the meeting.
Meanwhile responding to a question, Radhakrishnan said he had been taking up the Jallikattu issue with various Ministers at the Centre for the past one year. “Going by the progress made in this regard, I am sure Jallikattu will be conducted during this Pongal festival,” he added.
He also thanked Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, DMK president M Karunanidhi and leaders of various political parties who had been supporting resumption of Jallikkattu. On Thursday, the minister distributed relief materials to around 1,300 rain-flood affected families in Bucks Road, off Greenways Road, Raja Annamalai puram, in the city.