PM Modi assured the people of Kerala and Tamil Nadu that his government will work shoulder to shoulder with the new governments in their states.
In a conciliatory gesture following the BJP’s defeat in both the South Indian states, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday congratulated the Congress-led UDF alliance and Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam for their respective victories in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
While addressing party workers from the BJP headquarters in New Delhi, Prime Minister Modi assured the people of Kerala and Tamil Nadu that his government will work shoulder to shoulder with the new governments in their states.
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“The people of Tamil Nadu have tried a new experiment. I congratulate the UDF as well. I assure the people of Kerala and Tamil Nadu that the Indian government will work shoulder to shoulder with them for their development,” Modi said.
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Rejoicing over the historic victory of the BJP in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry, Modi said that the results of the Assembly elections are a victory for India’s democracy and Constitution.
“Today, not only India’s democracy has triumphed; today, India’s Constitution has also triumphed. Our constitutional institutions have triumphed, our democratic processes have triumphed,” the Prime Minister added.
While asserting that winning and losing are a natural part of democracy and politics, Modi said that people of West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry have shown the world why India is the mother of democracy.
“Democracy isn’t just a system, it’s our culture,” he added.
The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) registered a landslide victory in Kerala, winning 99 of the 140 seats. The CPI(M)-led LDF saw its last remaining bastion fall as their alliance was reduced to just 35 seats.
The BJP also made significant gains in a state where it has historically struggled, winning 3 seats. Others, including independents, also won 3 seats.
But the biggest surprise came in Tamil Nadu, where actor-politician Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) made a blockbuster debut to emerge as the single largest party with 107 seats (91 declared victories and leads in 16 more seats).
The tally of the ruling DMK and allies came down to 74 seats and at one point in time, the alliance even slipped to third place as AIADMK appeared poised for second place.
However, as the counting progressed, the DMK and allies gained some more seats and AIADMK finished third with 53 seats (44 declared victories and leads in 9 seats).
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