On March 11, in Kochi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi boosted the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance’s election campaign in Kerala by attacking the LDF-UDF political landscape. He accused the Congress of exploiting the West Asia conflict for "political gains" and reached out to the Dheevara community.
Modi’s visit to Kerala, which included attending a series of programs, was overshadowed by political controversy. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and other LDF ministers boycotted the Prime Minister's official event to inaugurate infrastructure projects after State PWD Minister P.A. Mohammed Riyas was not invited.
Riyas's exclusion prompted the CPI(M) to hastily organize inauguration ceremonies for two National Highway 66 six-lane projects in northern Kerala, which the Prime Minister was scheduled to launch.
However, Modi ignored the absence of the Chief Minister and Left ministers from the official event and inaugurated projects worth approximately Rs 11,000 crore in the state.
He laid the foundation stone for a Polypropylene unit, worth over Rs 5,500 crore, at the Kochi Refinery of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), launched a new train service, inaugurated the two NH-66 six-lane projects, and three redeveloped railway stations, and dedicated various other initiatives in the rail sector to the nation.
Prior to this, he engaged with the Dheevara community at the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Akhila Kerala Dheevara Sabha at Marine Drive.
At the celebratory event, Modi said that the Dheevara community has the potential to drive Kerala's economy forward and called upon young fishermen to take the lead in strengthening India's Blue Economy.
The community holds a significant voting share in certain coastal areas of the state, and the Prime Minister's participation in their event comes at a time when political parties are intensifying their outreach efforts ahead of the upcoming Kerala Assembly elections.
Later, at a party rally, he accused the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF and the opposition Congress-led UDF of corruption and urged the southern state to move towards alternating between CPI(M)-headed LDF and Congress-led UDF governments for the sake of Kerala's progress.
Referring to the BJP's victory in Thrissur in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and its wresting of the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation from the CPI(M) in December last year, Modi expressed confidence that the saffron party would win in the upcoming assembly elections.
He also launched a sharp attack on Congress and its leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing the opposition party of "playing politics" over the West Asia crisis, and stated that the LoP was unaware of the country's development.
Modi also raised the issue of the Sabarimala gold loss to criticize both the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF and the Congress-led UDF, describing them as "partners in crime" in corruption, communal politics, and hindering development and industry in the state.
"They are partners in the looting of the Sabarimala temple. While LDF leaders are accused of looting the gold from the temple, the UDF is accused of selling the looted gold," Modi alleged, without further elaboration.
The Prime Minister also referred to the solar scam during the UDF government and the CMRL scam during the current LDF government, saying that both fronts behaved in the same way.
He urged the people of the state to give the BJP-NDA a chance to serve them for the next five years, as this would come with "Modi's guarantees".
Modi also criticized Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, claiming that the Congress "prince" doesn't know about the development happening in the country, as he was unaware that the youth and various companies in India, including in Kerala, were involved in drone manufacturing.
"The Congress's prince doesn't even know that Indian youth are creating magic in drone manufacturing. He does not know that many companies in India are manufacturing drones. He does not know that Kerala's youth are building drone startups. He is limited to a small circle and cannot see the growth of India," the PM said.
Modi's remarks were in reference to Gandhi's recent statement at an event in Thiruvananthapuram, where he said that China was dominating drone manufacturing and that India was nowhere close to it currently.
Modi did not spare the Congress either, accusing it of deliberately making "provocative and irresponsible statements" in connection with the West Asia crisis for political reasons, while the Centre and the Gulf nations were doing everything possible to help the Indians stranded there.
"It is unfortunate that Congress, even in such times of crisis, is playing politics. It is deliberately making provocative and irresponsible statements, so that the situation deteriorates and our people are stranded in trouble, and then they can together make reels blaming Modi. That is their game," he said.
He contended that the current BJP-led NDA government always makes every possible effort to help its citizens when they are in trouble.
"Be it saving the nurses stranded in Iraq or freeing Father Tom from the clutches of terrorists in Yemen, India now does not abandon its citizens in their time of crisis.
"Father Alexis Premkumar was safely rescued and brought back from Afghanistan. Even today, our aim is to ensure that Indians stranded in West Asian countries amidst the war are safe and receive all possible facilities," the PM said.
He said that he was "happy" that the governments of the Gulf nations were taking care of Indian citizens there and he was "grateful" to them.