Narendra Modi to address 'hunkar' rally in Patna

Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate for the next general elections Narendra Modi will address 'hunkar' rally Sunday in the Bihar capital.

It will formally launch the party's election campaign in Bihar after its Chief Minister Nitish Kumar parted ways with the BJP four months ago.

It will also be the first show of strength for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) under its prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in Bihar, after the ruling Janata Dal (United) ended its 17-years-old alliance with BJP.

The much-hyped Modi's rally is seen as a bid to mobilise support and strengthen the support base in the state.

The state in the Hindi heartland that sends 40 Lok Sabha members (MPs) to the parliament is politically very important.

In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the party had won 12 seats, while the JD(U) won 20 seats, when they had contested as a combined force.

It is expected that Modi will target Nitish Kumar, who has openly opposed him by repeatedly saying that the prime ministerial candidate should be of secular credentials.

BJP state president Mangal Pandey and party legislator Griraj Singh, a vocal supporter of Modi's Hinduvta brand of politics, claimed that rally will be the largest ever and a historic one.

The party has hired 11 special trains, 20,000 SUVs, 6,000 buses, 126 river boats, 33 cranes and a giant gizmo-laden stage.

"Modi spend money like anything for the rally," JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar said.