Tamil Nadu: Annamalai's Padayatra 'En Mann En Makkal' To Begin Today

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president K Annamalai's 'En Mann En Makkal' (My Land, My People) padayatra will begin today evening (28 July) after a public meeting in Rameswaram.

After addressing the meeting, Union Home Minister Amit Shah would flag off the padayatra, which would cover a distance of around four kilometres and end at the Sri Ramanathaswamy Temple.

Shah is expected to offer prayers at the temple and visit the house of a party worker on Saturday (29 July). He is also scheduled to visit the house of Dr APJ Abdul Kalam and the Vivekananda Memorial before departing from Rameswaram.

The padayatra will then resume from Ramanathapuram.

In the next two days, Annamalai is scheduled to interact with people in Muthukulathur, Paramakudi and Thiruvadanai.

According to party sources, more than one lakh people have registered to join the padayatra on the first day.

Leaders of the BJP's alliance partners, such as the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), the Puthiya Thamizhagam and the Tamil Maanila Congress, have been invited.

During the course of the padayatra, Annamalai will address a number of street corner and grama sabha meetings. Around 10 large public meetings, with participation of Cabinet ministers, have been planned.

The first phase of the padayatra is expected to cover the Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga, Madurai, Theni, Virudhunagar, Thoothukudi, Kanyakumari, and Tirunelveli parliamentary constituencies over a period of around one month.

The BJP has a sizeable support base in the Ramanathapuram Lok Sabha constituency. It had received a vote share of 17.20 per cent votes in the 2014 elections and 16.55 per cent votes in the 2009 elections, even when not allied with the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).