Varanasi to host Amma’s 70th birth anniversary

Varanasi, the Lok Sabha constituency represented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, would be the venue for the 70th birthday of late J Jayalalithaa, the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu who also was the general secretary of the AIADMK. Saturday will see nearly 3,000 AIADMK delegates from various parts of Uttar Pradeshj assembling at Varanasi under the auspices of Dr Mythreryan, MP and senior leader.

“In 2014 many people from North India had joined the AIADMK . Our party has units in New Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and  Andaman islands. But the AIADMK units in these places have only Tamils as members. It is a different story in UP where the Hindi-speaking people constitute the majority of the party,” Dr Mythreyan told The Pioneer.

He said taking into account the personal friendship between the Prime Minister and the late AIADMK supremo, it was felt that the ideal venue to observe the birth anniversary of Amma would be Varanasi. “The Prime Minister had visited Chennai on February 24, the birth anniversary of Amma, to inaugurate one of her pet programmes-distribution of subsidised two wheelers to working women in Tamil Nadu,” said Mythreyan.

Saturday will see many poojas and homams in the temples in the city as a mark of respect to the late AIADMK leader.  “We are also honouring 70 senior citizens by offering them veshtis and sarees.. The meeting will also discuss how to strengthen the party in the Hindi belt,” said Mythreyan who disclosed that there were more than 10,000 members of the party in UP itself.

The AIADMK MPs may be on a warpath with the Centre over the delay in constituting the Cauvery Management Board as per the verdict of the  Supreme Court. But it has not come in the way to express gratitude to the Prime Minister for flying down to Chennai to inaugurate the two-wheeler scheme for women, according to Mythreyan.