Nahan gears up for PM Modi’s maiden visit

Pankaj Sharma

Nahan, May 23

The local unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is giving final touches to the preparations for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Nahan, where he will campaign for party’s Shimla Lok Sabha candidate Suresh Kashyap. Modi, visiting Nahan for the first time as Prime Minister, is scheduled to address a public gathering at Chaugan Maidan in Nahan on Friday.

The people of Himachal Pradesh are eagerly waiting for the Prime Minister Modi’s visit and tremendous enthusiasm is being seen among them. Arrangements have been made to accommodate around 40,000 people at Chaugan Maidan. People will start arriving at the rally venue 7 am onwards and by 9 am, the Chaugan Maidan will be ready to welcome Narendra Modi. — Rajiv Bindal, BJP state president

While speaking to The Tribune, BJP state president Rajiv Bindal, who is overseeing the preparations for the Prime Minister’s visit, said there is excitement among the locals for the rally.

“The people of Himachal Pradesh are eagerly waiting for the Prime Minister Modi’s visit and tremendous enthusiasm is being seen among them,” Bindal said, who is a former Nahan MLA.

“Arrangements have been made to accommodate around 40,000 people at Chaugan Maidan,” he said.

Bindal said residents from Shimla, Solan, and Sirmaur are expected to attended the rally in large numbers. “People will start arriving at the rally venue 7 am onwards and by 9 am, Chaugan Maidan will be ready to welcome Narendra Modi,” he added.

To ensure maximum attendance, a substantial fleet of buses and other vehicles has been arranged to transport party workers from all 17 Assembly constituencies within the Shimla Lok Sabha segment to Nahan.

Prime Minister Modi is also scheduled to address election rallies in the Mandi Lok Sabha seat before heading to Punjab by 12.30 pm. The BJP is making extensive efforts to ensure a successful turnout at the Sirmaur rally.

Interestingly, this visit marks Modi’s return to Nahan after 25 years. In 1999, as the national general secretary of the BJP and state incharge for Himachal Pradesh, Modi had campaigned here for the Lok Sabha elections.

At that time, the BJP had an alliance with the Himachal Vikas Congress (HVC) and he had addressed street meetings in support of the HVC candidate.