THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday expressed confidence that the BJP-led NDA would form the government in Kerala in 2026.Addressing a meeting of hundreds of booth-level workers drawn from local body wards, Shah said,” To the voters of Kerala, I want to say that the BJP-led NDA under Modi will fight the 2026 assembly elections to form the government in Kerala. The 25,000-strong cadre gathered here is sending out this message.”Kerala has experienced LDF and UDF governance over the years. But what they delivered was violence, corruption, vote bank politics, appeasement and a haven for anti-national elements.”I want to thank the people of Kerala for all the support given so far. In 2014, we got 11 per cent of the votes, which increased to 16 per cent in 2019, and in 2024, we garnered 20 percent of the votes. A party that reaches a 20 percent vote share can soon achieve 35 per cent,” he said.”If you want change, you usually switch between UDF and LDF, but neither can bring real change. Now is the time for a transformation. Vote for the BJP,” he said.He asked the cadre to take a vow that in the upcoming local body polls, the BJP – NDA will contest over 21,000 wards and make its presence felt by securing 25 per cent of the votes.Shah hit out at the LDF Government in Kala, alleging that its nine years in power were filled with corruption cases such as Exalogic scam, cooperative bank, Life Mission, K-fone and PPE kit corruption. “Pinarayi might get upset when I say that gold smuggling is the biggest state-sponsored racket in the entire country,” he said.Taking a dig at the alleged corruption of UDF, Shah quipped; “bade miya to bade miya, chote miya subhanallah.”I won’t spend much time discussing UDF corruption because the Congress-led front is on its way out. Bar owners’ bribery, Solar scam, Palarivattom bridge corruption – all happened during their rule,” he said and claimed that in contrast, there hasn’t been a single corruption charge in the Modi government’s 11-year tenure so far.Shah accused the LDF government of going soft on hardline outfits. “When the activities of PFI spread to other states, Modi ji took action and banned the organisation. The state government also has the authority to invoke similar sections. I want to ask why the Pinarayi government did not ban the PFI ? Modi ji not only banned the outfit but also ensured all anti-nationals were sent to jail,” he said.”Recently, a communist leader claimed that the BJP is a party of North India. However, we have the government in Assam, we ousted the Left to form a government in Tripura, we hold power in Odisha and Telengana, we have emerged as a big party. People once mocked us for our lack of presence in these states, but now we are on the path to forming a government in Tamil Nadu,” Shah said.The Union Home Minister accused the Left parties of unleashing violence; “Left goons have killed our workers. Many families lost fathers, husbands. sons and brothers. They all dreamed of a BJP government in Kerala. It is time to make this dream a reality.”Earlier, Shah inaugurated the new state committee office of the BJP. “For other parties, the office is a workplace, but for the BJP, the office is a holy place like a temple.””Without the office, the ideology cannot be taken to the workers. A workerless party has no basis. Therefore, for us, more imporant than placing our Chief Minister in the secretariat, is that workers use the office and lay the foundation for the Viksit Kerala,” he said. The Union Home Minister will have darshan at the Rajarajeshwara Temple in Taliparamba in Kannur district in the evening before returning to Delhi.
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