Narendra Modi to address election rally in Chennai tomorrow

Chennai: BJP's top leadership, including Narendra Modi and L K Advani, will tour the state starting tomorrow to address election rallies, with the party's Prime Ministerial candidate kicking off the first of the series on April 13 in Chennai. (India Votes 2014: full coverage)

BJP National General Secretary P Muralidhar Rao told reporters that the Gujarat Chief Minister will address a public rally in Chennai for the south Chennai constituency, being fought by La Ganesan. (Battle 2014: Track Live Updates)

He will come back to the state on April 16 and 17, and will tentatively tour various constituencies including Erode, Coimbatore and Krishnagiri where he will speak in support of his party candidates and those of the allies, Mr Rao said.

"This is his first visit to the state after the declaration of the NDA in Tamil Nadu (last month)," Mr Rao said in an apparent reference to his party firming up a six-party rainbow alliance with DMDK, PMK, MDMK, KMDK and IJK.

The final list of his touring constituencies was yet to be arrived at, Mr Rao said. Mr Modi was also likely to meet top Tamil actor Rajnikant in Chennai tomorrow, he said.

Party patriarch Mr Advani and National President Rajnath Singh will arrive on April 18, but their tour itinerary was yet to be finalised, he said, adding, other senior leaders, M Venkiah Naidu and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, will also tour various constituencies.

"There is intense focus from the national leadership on Tamil Nadu in reaching every nook and corner and this is our campaign objective. The tour managers of the leaders were also working out options on alliance party leaders sharing the dais with those from the BJP," he said.

A possible BJP-led government after the polls will be sensitive to the issues concerning Tamil Nadu and its people - such as industrialisation and employment besides the Sri Lankan Tamils issue and instances of attacks on Indian fishermen by the Lankan navy, Mr Rao said.

About rejection of nomination papers of Nilgiris (SC) BJP candidate S Gurumurthy, Rao dubbed it as an "unfortunate setback" but expressed confidence that it would not affect his party's overall electoral prospects in the state.

Asked why BJP was not critical of the Jayalalithaa government, Rao said his party's fight was with Congress and its constituents, claiming BJP was the only alternative at the national level.

He said his party will be "faithful" to allies when asked if a post-poll alliance with AIADMK was possible.

"We and the allies are fighting against AIADMK. If we were soft on them (AIADMK), this alliance (six-party alliance) would not have emerged," he said.

He was responding to Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram's statement that the ruling AIADMK was BJP's "B-Team" with its leader Ms Jayalalithaa sparing the party of any criticism in her election campaign.

The Congress leader was a "discredited" person "who is scared to face the people of Tamil Nadu," by not contesting the elections this time, Mr Rao said.

On Karunanidhi's criticism of BJP calling it 'communal', Mr Rao said the leader made different comments at different times and recalled he had even praised Mr Modi sometime back.

On the Election Commission ordering FIR against Mr Modi's close aide Amit Shah for allegedly making inflammatory speeches, Mr Rao denied any such comments by the Gujarat strongman and said the party itself had defended him.