"Remember Gangaikondachola...": Kanimozhi's Tamil Nadu Poll Warning To BJP

Parliament's debate Tuesday on the Pahalgam terror attack segued briefly into a face-off over the legacy of the Chola empire - which ruled vast parts of the country from Tamil Nadu - after DMK MP Kanimozhi criticised the BJP for only remembering the southern state before an election.

"It is only before every election that the central government discovers Tamil culture..." she began, "But the Cholas conquered the Ganges... the Tamilians will always win," Ms Kanimozhi thundered.

"Remember Gangaikondacholan (i.e., a reference to Chola emperor Rajendra I, who annexed territory up to the holy river and built a new capital called Gangaikondacholapuram) ..."

She was responding to a growing row over Prime Minister Narendra Modi commemorating a maritime expedition by Chola emperor Rajendra I to southeast Asia. The visit has been seen as another attempt by the BJP to connect with Tamil voters and win over a state that has historically rejected the party.

The Chola empire - which ruled vast parts of India and also exerted influence over parts of present-day Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia - became a point of contention after the visit, with the BJP, DMK, and Tamil actor-politician Vijay's TVK all attacking each other.

Vijay, whose TVK is seen as a dark horse for next year's election and who has made no secret of his disdain for the DMK and the BJP, launched a scathing critique of the latter for "lecturing Tamil Nadu on its own history" and accused the latter of allowing the Prime Minister's visit.

READ | Tamil Actor Vijay Slams BJP For "Drama" On Cholas, Party Responds

"Had the DMK given the Cholas the honour they deserve... this anti-Tamil central government wouldn't have stepped in to take credit. Instead, the DMK welcomed PM Modi's visit as a matter of 'honour' - this is not pride... it is surrender," Vijay said in a strongly-worded statement.

The BJP's Karu Nagarajan responded by accusing Vijay of spreading lies.

"Has any other Prime Minister embraced and showcased Tamil culture to the world like Narendra Modi? PM Modi has acted as an ambassador of Tamil pride," he said.

And the BJP's former state unit chief, K Annamalai, told NDTV Mr Modi only wanted to make the Chola Empire a part of "global" history. He too accused Chief Minister MK Stalin's DMK of being "nervous" about the visit because they had not done honoured the Chola dynasty.

READ | "PM Wants To Make Cholas Global, DMK Keeping Them Local"

Many have drawn parallels between the PM's Ariyalur visit this month and the many he made to Tamil Nadu in the first four months of last year, ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

Mr Modi made nearly a dozen visits then as he tried to drum up support for his party.

Those efforts didn't deliver for the BJP; the party and its allies were routed. The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance contested all 39 Lok Sabha seats on offer but won zero.

With input from agencies

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