‘Southern help’ for Modi to win battle in his backyard

“This election is being watched by everyone across the country and we are here to ensure that the party doesn’t lose out on Tamil votes. Our team has people from almost all the districts of Tamil Nadu. We are just not going to Tamil speaking voters here as Tamils, but we are seeing to it that they get to talk to people from their own districts as well,” says Radhakrishnan.

Maninagar has a sizeable Tamil population, about 6,500, and the team is carrying on a door-to-door campaign for Modi and the party. “First we ask them about which part of Tamil Nadu they belong to. After learning about the specific district a family hails from, a worker from that particular district is asked to interact with the family. It becomes easier for people also to identify persons from their own district and they open up better,” says Radhakrishnan.

But then, this campaigning is not limited to Maninagar alone. The team has also visited other constituencies like Sabarmati, Ellisbridge, Asarwa and also gone beyond Ahmedabad. “What do you call that place? Yes, Himmatnagar. We have reached out to almost 1,500 Tamil voters across these areas,” says Lakshmanan.

Radhakrishnan says the response they have received so far has been good. “Traditionally, the Tamil voters outside Tamil Nadu have been voting for the Congress, but there has been a steady shift over the years. In Gujarat, issues like financial and social security have been a big reason for them to turn to the BJP. Also, unlike in the Congress regime, there has been no communal clash here during the last few years, where any Tamil was harassed,” says Radhakrishnan, adding, that the absence of discrimination has been a big reason to shape the choice of the voters here.

“They don’t say Tamils, but Tamil speaking Gujaratis. Nowhere will one see this kind of inclusive terminology,” he adds.