Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address a mass gathering of over two lakh women organised by the BJP’s state unit in Kerala’s Thrissur on Wednesday.

PM Modi landed in Kerala in the afternoon and held a roadshow in Thrissur. Later, he will address the gathering at Thekkinkadu ground.

The town has been decked up with banners and hoardings to welcome the prime minister. The women were seen waiting for PM Modi’s arrival to catch a glimpse of him. One of them said, “Our PM Modi is the most respected leader, he is coming to Kerala to address the woman here…we are here to get a glimpse of him.”

The event, titled ‘Sthree Shakthi Modikk Oppam’ (Empower Women with Modi), is organised to commend PM Modi for successfully passing the Women’s Reservation Bill in both houses of the Parliament.

Women from diverse backgrounds, including anganwadi teachers, ASHA workers, entrepreneurs, artists, MGNREGA and neighbourhood network workers, and social and cultural activists, are expected to participate in the convention.

Several notable figures including actress-danseuse Shobhana, cricketer Minnu Mani, entrepreneur Beena Kannan, singer Vaikom Vijayalakshmi and Mariyakutty, an elderly woman who raised her voice against corruption and red-tapism, are among those expected to attend the event.

PM Modi is on a two-day visit to Tamil Nadu, Lakshadweep and Kerala from January 2-3. On Tuesday, he dedicated to nation and laid foundation stone of several projects worth over ₹20,000 crore in Tamil Nadu’s Tiruchirappalli. Later in the day, he reached Lakshadweep and chaired a review meeting on aspects relating to the union territory’s progress. He also inaugurated and laid the foundation stone of projects worth ₹1,156 crore in Kavaratti.

The Kerala event is widely perceived as the official launch of the saffron camp’s election campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, as the BJP seeks to make political inroads into Kerala, currently dominated by the CPI(M)-led LDF and Congress-led UDF.

(With inputs from agencies)