Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting at the L.B. Nagar stadium on Monday evening started a good two hours late and it took a while for the venue to get filled. But his inaugural remarks in Telugu where he started addressing “Telangana people” and ended with “Telugu people” as if addressing people of both TS and AP was cheered lustily.
“I like Hyderabad a lot. Sardar Patel is my idol and if not for his determination to unite the nation, we would not have had this freedom to talk to you like this,” he said in Telugu with a north accent and ended by complimenting Telugu people for making it a ‘grand city’.
Before he began his speech, Mr. Modi had a chat with party Telangana chief K. Laxman and Cabinet colleague J.P. Nadda, also party State in-charge. The Prime Minister after his remarks in Telugu started introducing BJP candidates contesting in the capital region but did not accept a saffron scarf when senior leader and contesting from Rajendranagar constituency, Baddam Bal Reddy, tried to put it on his neck.
There were a few light moments when Mr. Laxman and general secretary Muralidhar Rao rushed to the Prime Minister’s side to remind him he did not “introduce” Mr. Laxman and Mr. Kishan Reddy - contesting from Amberpet, but he said aloud: I had already mentioned their names in the beginning.
The biggest cheer was for Goshamahal candidate Raja Singh. He had earlier delivered a fiery speech targeting the Owaisi brothers without naming them. Party activists, some of whom managed to get into the media enclosure, raised slogans: “Tiger of Hindus”.
To rouse passions further, Mr. Singh said Hyderabad will be renamed as Bhagyanagar if his party is elected to power.
Most contesting candidates were given few minutes to introduce themselves before the Prime Minister arrived by MLC N. Ramchander Rao, also contesting from Malkajgiri, presiding the meeting. Mr. Laxman, who spoke just before Mr. Modi, reminded that it was the second meeting for the Prime Minister at the venue.
He accused the TRS Government of making Hyderabad a ‘sad city’ ridden with potholes and devoid of basic amenities.
Chants of ‘Modi...Modi”, Modi face masks and several activists vying to take selfies even as the PM was speaking were other distinct highlights
