‘This is how it began in Gujarat’: Modi signals BJP expansion in Kerala

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Thiruvananthapuram, to inaugurate various developmental projects on Friday, January 23, said that Kerala will witness certain changes in the upcoming assembly polls, which is barely months away. The PM's visit to the state capital comes just a month after the BJP's victory in the Thiruvananthapuram corporation, which ended over four decades of the Left rule in the local body.

Addressing a massive party-organised rally, Modi recalled that the BJP's rise to power in Gujarat started with winning a single city nearly four decades ago, and said the same would happen in Kerala.

He said that prior to 1987, the BJP was a marginal party in Gujarat and would hardly get any media coverage.

"In 1987, for the first time, the BJP won control of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, much like the party's recent victory in Thiruvananthapuram. Since then, the people of Gujarat have entrusted us with the opportunity to serve, and we have continued to do so for decades.

"Our journey began in one city in Gujarat, and similarly, in Kerala, our beginnings have started with a single city. I believe this demonstrates that the people of Kerala are beginning to place their trust in the BJP, connecting with us in the same way Gujarat once did," the PM said.

He said that his party's win in Thiruvananthapuram civic body was a victory of the firm determination to liberate Kerala from the alleged corrupt rule of the LDF and UDF.

Modi claimed that for decades, both the LDF and UDF have neglected Thiruvananthapuram, depriving the capital city of basic facilities and infrastructure.

"The Left and the Congress have consistently failed to address the needs of our people. However, our BJP team has already begun working towards a developed Thiruvananthapuram. To the people of the city, I say -- have faith, the change that has long been overdue is finally on its way." "Thiruvananthapuram, for the entire country, will become a model city. I extend my full support to make Thiruvananthapuram one of the best cities in India," he said while addressing the massive crowd at the Putharikandam Maidan here.

Modi arrived in Kerala to launch various developmental projects and flag off new train services in the poll-bound state.

With PTI inputs