Chennai: Drawing an inspiration from BJP senior L. Ganesan’s campaign style during the 2014 Lok Sabha election, BJP president Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan and party’s R. K. Nagar Assembly constituency candidate Gangai Amaran availed a ride on a fishing boat and campaigned among the fishermen on Monday.
They had set out on a fiberglass boat arranged by the party’s fishermen wing under its state president S. Satish Kumar, from the Kasimedu fishing harbour and had remained afloat for over two hours.
They were greeted by the fishermen returning to the shore. “There has been tremendous response from the fishermen who were returning in about twenty boats with their catches. When our president and candidate began addressing them, the fishermen responded positively,” Satish Kumar told this correspondent.
Interestingly, music director Gangai Amaran, sang the popular Tamil song:
“Tharaimel pirakkavaitthan,” from former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran (AIADMK founder)’s film – Padagotti, during his ‘high sea campaign.’ It was received with a thunderous applause from the fishermen.
After reaching the shore, Dr. Tamilisai assured the fishermen that the BJP would work out a plan to modernise the Kasimedu fishing harbour and provide storage yards with central assistance. Recalling the Centre’s commitment to encourage deep-sea fishing, she said the deep-sea fishing would not only improve their livelihood opportunities but also their quality of life.
The saffron party has formed a poll committee comprising 100 members to take up the campaign in the fishing hamlets of this constituency, where the fisher folk account for about 40,000 families.
