ON FEBRUARY 14, 1998, Coimbatore was subjected to a devastating attack. Thirteen bomb explosions rocked the city. The first set of bombs went off at Shanmugam Road near the head post office in R.S. Puram—a swanky north Indian settlement in the city. The bomb exploded at 3:50 pm, minutes before BJP president L.K. Advani got there to address a rally.
The city has fought hard to overcome the communal divisions caused by the attack. Now, 26 years later, Prime Minister Narendra Modi chose Shanmugam Road as the point to end his road show. The BJP and Hindu organisations in the city pay homage to victims of the terror attack at the site on anniversaries of the blasts. They have also been asking for a memorial. Modi’s roadshow, on March 18, turned out to be a real show of strength, especially considering the voters in Tamil Nadu have consistently rejected the BJP.
Coimbatore, which is one of eight Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu’s western (Kongu) region, is crucial for the DMK, AIADMK and the BJP.
The city, known for its business, flourishing industries and proletarian movements, has also had an RSS presence since 1949. The Coimbatore shakha has over 40,000 members and at least 4,000 active members. However, sustained and intensive efforts by successive state governments prevented the spread of RSS ideology. Though there was ground support for hindutva, J. Jayalalithaa changed the voting pattern in the seat after she came to power in the state in 2001. The DMK won some seats in and around Coimbatore in 2006, but since the emergence of AIADMK strongman S.P. Velumani around 2011, the region has turned into an AIADMK bastion. However, AIADMK-ally BJP lost to the CPI(M) in 2019. This has been attributed to the BJP not catering to rural voters, factionalism within its Coimbatore unit and a prevailing anti-Modi sentiment at the time.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der March 31, 2024-Ausgabe von THE WEEK India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der March 31, 2024-Ausgabe von THE WEEK India.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.