CHENNAI: Union Minister for Railways and Coal Piyush Goyal will visit Tamil Nadu on Monday to invigorate the party workers ahead of the Lok Sabha election.
On a busy day, he would also lay the foundation stone for the new railway line - Morappur to Dharmapuri in Dharmapuri, besides dedicating the NTPL power plant in Thoothukudi and inaugurate 150 MW solar plant.
Mr. Goyal would address a meeting of the party’s Karyakarthas in Thoothukudi where the BJP state president Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan is expected to contest in the Lok Sabha election. Dr. Tamilisai, daughter of senior Congress leader Kumari Anandan, had unsuccessfully contested from the North Chennai LS constituency during the 2009 election. Her migration to the southern constituency is expected to consolidate the votes of her party and the AIADMK with which it has aligned for the upcoming LS poll.
Unlike her, party senior and Union Minister of State for Finance and Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan would seek re-election from his native Kanyakumari constituency. Among the party leaders who contested in the 2014 LS election, only Mr. Radhakrishnan has succeeded in romping home the winner and he was rewarded with a berth in the Cabinet. This time, the saffron party is determined to improve its tally and also ensure the victory of the combine from over 30 constituencies.
“Since the BJP has been allotted only 5 seats during the seat-sharing negotiations with the ruling AIADMK, the party is getting geared up to present a tough fight this time and improve its tally. We hope to make it in large numbers along with our allies, to the Parliament,” a BJP senior said.
During the negotiations, the AIADMK had presented a pragmatic picture of the strength and weaknesses of the saffron party and conveyed to the BJP leaders that they could choose only five ‘winning constituencies.’
“The AIADMK being a major player in State politics and also at the helm of affairs, we allowed the AIADMK to lead the alliance in Tamil Nadu. Our alliance with the AIADMK will reverse our electoral fortunes and help to improve our image as a national party with regional presence,” he pointed out.
