Both Ram Nath Kovind , the Presidential candidate of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and Meira Kumar , the nominee put up by the Opposition, visited Chennai on Saturday to drum up support.
Mr. Kovind met members of both the factions of the AIADMK separately.
While the meeting with the ruling AIADMK (Amma) was a closed-door affair, the meeting with AIADMK (Puratchi Thalaivi Amma) was open to public.
“We have to fulfil the dream of new India which our Prime Minister has been advocating. We will be celebrating 75 years of Independence in 2022. Till then, everybody should strive to build a new India,” Mr. Kovind told MPs and MLAs of the Panneerselvam faction.
In his speech, Mr. Panneerselvam said that Jayalalithaa and Mr. Modi, despite their political differences, had remained friends. “That is why we decided to support the BJP candidate,” he said.
Later in the evening, Mr. Kovind addressed the ruling AIADMK (Amma) led by Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami at Kalaivanar Arangam.
Meira’s pitch
In the city the same day, Opposition presidential candidate Meira Kumar said that social justice and democratic values are the binding factors between the DMK and Congress.
After meeting DMK working president M.K. Stalin and MLAs here, she said, “Tamil Nadu is a State which fought for social justice and inclusiveness, and the great democratic values we hold so dear. I am fighting an ideological battle.
“As many as 17 major political parties met under the chairmanship of Congress president Sonia Gandhi and decided to make me the candidate. I am greatly honoured by the trust they have reposed on me,” Ms. Kumar said.
She also met DMK chief M. Karunanidhi.
