Thiruvananthapuram, Dec 13
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s four social media posts -- three of them in Malayalam -- captured the BJP’s sense of arrival in Kerala after the party scripted history by emerging as the single largest force in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation, a first in the state’s political trajectory.
The unusually sustained and language-specific response from the Prime Minister underlined the national importance the BJP leadership is attaching to the result, projecting it as a turning point in Kerala’s politics rather than a routine local body victory.
Thanking voters across the state for backing BJP-NDA candidates in the local body polls, PM Modi said the people of Kerala were disillusioned with both the Congress-led UDF and the CPI(M)-led LDF, and were now looking at the NDA as the only credible alternative capable of delivering good governance and building a “Vikasita Keralam†-- a developed Kerala offering opportunities for all.
His Malayalam posts were clearly aimed at Kerala’s electorate, signalling the BJP’s intent to deepen its grassroots connect and position itself as a serious contender in the State.
In another message, PM Modi described the mandate in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation as a “watershed moment†in Kerala politics. He said the verdict reflected people’s belief that the State’s development aspirations could be fulfilled only under the BJP and assured that the party would focus on the growth of the capital city while improving the ‘Ease of Living’ for its residents -- a pointed pitch to urban voters ahead of future electoral contests.
The Prime Minister also used the moment to spotlight the party’s organisational strength. Thanking BJP workers for their tireless efforts, PM Modi said the victory was the culmination of decades of sustained work by grassroots karyakartas across generations in Kerala.
“Our karyakartas are our strength; we are proud of them,†he said in yet another Malayalam post, a message that struck a strong chord within the party ranks.
The fourth post, in English, tied the narrative together, reinforcing the BJP’s assertion that the Thiruvananthapuram outcome marks a shift not just in the capital but in Kerala’s broader political landscape.
PM Modi’s remarks were quickly echoed by senior Union Ministers, including Rajnath Singh, Piyush Goyal and Nitin Gadkari, who took to social media to congratulate the Kerala unit on what they termed a historic breakthrough.
Party leaders see the result as evidence of the BJP’s expanding footprint in the state and a sign that Kerala’s political equations are beginning to change, with the capital city emerging as a new battleground ahead of the next year’s Assembly elections.
- IANS
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