Thiruvananthapuram, 11 Jan (H.S.):Union Home Minister Amit Shah reached Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday night, setting the stage for a series of political, organisational, and religious engagements that are expected to formally launch the National Democratic Alliance’s (NDA) election campaign in Kerala.
The senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader arrived at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport on a special aircraft and is scheduled to participate in multiple high-level programmes in the state capital on Sunday.
According to the official itinerary, Amit Shah will begin the day with a visit to the historic Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple, where he will offer prayers. He will later interact with newly elected BJP representatives from local self-government institutions, underlining the party’s focus on strengthening its grassroots organisation across Kerala ahead of the upcoming elections.
At 11 am, Shah is scheduled to address a BJP elected representatives’ conference at Kowdiar. The meeting is expected to focus on campaign preparedness, booth-level coordination, and constituency-specific strategies. Later in the afternoon, he will attend the BJP state core committee meeting, where key political and electoral issues are likely to be discussed in detail.
Senior BJP leaders, including Rajeev Chandrasekhar, V. Muraleedharan, K. Surendran, and Shobha Surendran, are expected to take part in the deliberations. Party sources said the discussions will include candidate selection for constituencies classified as A Plus and A category, which the BJP considers crucial to improving its electoral performance in the state. Seat-sharing arrangements among NDA partners are also expected to be discussed during Shah’s meeting with alliance leaders in the evening.
BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has said that Amit Shah’s visit will officially mark the launch of the NDA’s election campaign activities in Kerala. The visit has drawn additional attention as it comes amid the arrest of chief priest Kandararu Rajeevaru in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case. Sources indicated that the possibility of a central agency probe into the case may also come up for discussion during the BJP’s internal meetings.
In view of the Home Minister’s visit, the Thiruvananthapuram city police have imposed extensive traffic restrictions across major parts of the capital from 7 am to 6 pm. Parking will be prohibited on several key roads, and vehicles violating the restrictions will be removed. Commuters, especially those travelling to the airport and railway stations, have been advised to plan their journeys in advance to avoid inconvenience.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman
