'Narendra Modi is our daddy': Tamil Nadu minister KT Rajendra Balaji says PM filling Jayalalithaa's absence

On Saturday, Tamil Nadu minister KT Rajendra Balaji attempted to answer a question as old as time itself: “Who’s your daddy?” [caption id=“attachment_6227771” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Tamil Nadu minister KT Rajendra Balaji. ANI[/caption] Balaji, the AIADMK leader and state minister for dairy development,  speaking to reporters in Maharajapuram village, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is “the father of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) cadre.” Balaji was responding to a question on how AIADMK forged an alliance with BJP given that its erstwhile leader, J Jayalalithaa, had avoided the ruling party,  The Quint  reported. “When Amma (Jayalalithaa) was alive, she was in full control. Her decisions were her own, so it was different then. But in today’s context, due to Amma’s absence, Modi is our daddy. He is India’s daddy. So we have accepted his leadership,” ANI quoted him as saying. Balaji’s remarks come weeks after the AIADMK and the BJP  formally announced their alliance for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. Union Minister Piyush Goyal, while addressing the media along with Chief Minister E Palaniswami and his deputy O Panneerselvam,  said that the NDA will fight and win in all 40 seats in the state. The two parties subsequently also brought the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) into the fold. The alliance now comprises six parties – AIADMK, PMK, BJP, DMDK, NR Congress and Puthiya Thamizhagam. The DMDK will contest from four seats as a part of the AIADMK-BJP alliance . Meanwhile, the MK Stalin-led DMK will contest from 20 seats, and will lead an alliance comprising of Congress, CPM, CPI, MDMK, VCK, IUML, KMDK and IJK.