Jammu in lockdown as thousands converge for Modi rally

With thousands of people pouring into Jammu to listen to BJP Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, who is scheduled to deliver his first ever speech in the state, the city is in a state of lockdown, says Firstpost correspondent Sameer Yasir, who is at the rally. People are heading towards the rally venue on foot said Yasir, adding that hundreds of others, traveling from distant parts of the state had reached the venue last evening and slept inside the stadium to ensure that the could listen to Modi. Significantly, around 6,000 people have also come to listen to him from Kashmir, he added. According to Yasir, the main factor driving the crowds is curiosity. “This is the biggest rally ever held by the BJP in the state, and the first time that Modi is visiting”, he said. Security is understandably extremely tight, with authorities keen to avoid a repeat of Modi’s Patna rally, which was the target of serial bomb blasts. Four high-ranking police officials, including an Inspector General of Police from Gujarat, arrived in Jammu three days before Modi’s rally. The Gujarat police will be personally overseeing the security arrangements at the venue where Modi is supposed to address the rally, sources said. [caption id=“attachment_1259805” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image: PTI[/caption] The Jammu and Kashmir police have deployed more than 4,000 police and paramilitary force personnel in the town to thwart any possible threat to the rally.  Called his ‘Lalkar’ or a challenge to battle, the rally is expected to buttress a surprising upsurge of support for the BJP in the Muslim majority state’s Jammu region. The rally is scheduled to begin at 11 am, but could be delayed, given the stringent security measures in place. Modi is expected to speak only around 1:30 pm. The BJP had dispatched its senior leaders both to Kashmir and Ladakh, the other two regions of the state, were they held talks with activists to ensure that the Jammu rally is a resounding success. Senior BJP leader in Kashmir Sofi Yousf told Firstpost the state unit of the party has made all arrangements for the people who want to travel to Jammu for the rally. “More than five thousand people would be joining the rally from Kashmir. All the arrangements have been made for them,” he said. The BJP which is expecting more than one lakh people to participate in the rally has set up a kitchen which would serve food to the people coming in from far flung areas. The kitchen has the capacity to serve more than 10 thousand people at a time. “For people coming in from far flung areas we will be serving food and transport arrangements have already been made for them,” said BJP Press secretary Balbeer Ram. Among the common people of Jammu, there is curiosity and word of mouth publicity. “We admire Modiji’s work. He is strict and incorruptible. He will take India to the next level and people like us will proposer,” believes Mohan Kumar, a tea seller in in Rajiv Chowk says. The BJP has taken onboard almost all the social, religious and traders’ associations to make the rally a grand success. Sunil Gupta, member of the traders’ federation of Jammu says all the traders are excited about Modi’s rally. “We have to show the unity by making this rally a resounding success. For that to happen people from different walks of life have come together and we have volunteered for this rally.” The Lalkar Rally has got both the Congress and the National Conference worried, the traders say. The Modi rally would change the political scene of Jammu province and help the State BJP to perform exceedingly well in the upcoming Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, it is expected. Dr Jitendra Singh, National Executive member and Chief Spokesperson of BJP in Jammu and Kashmir, says people are expected to come from remote parts of Jammu and special arrangements have been made for them.