Amit Shah in Madurai: Home Minister arrives; security beefed up in and around Meenakshi temple

Union Home Minister Amit Shah arrives at Madurai Airport on June 7, 2025.
| Photo Credit: R. Ashok

An elaborate security arrangement has been put in place in Madurai ahead of the two-day visit of BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday (June 7, 2025).

The BJP leader is scheduled to address party functionaries as part of the Tamil Nadu BJP’s core council meeting, at a private hotel on Sunday (June 8, 2025).

According to BJP leaders’ overseeing the arrangements, Mr Shah is likely to visit Sri Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple around 11 a.m. on Sunday (June 8, 2025). He is also addressing party workers near Othakadai in Madurai at 4 p.m. and is expected to leave the city around 6 p.m. for New Delhi.

TN BJP’s general secretary Raama Srinivasan said that Mr. Shah’s visit to Madurai would give a fillip to the cadres ahead of the general elections to the T.N. Legislative Assembly in May 2026. “With his rich experience, especially in handling pre-poll strategies, the rank and file in the BJP would get clarity on the need to intensify the campaign from now onwards. The numerous achievements of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the citizens over the last decade would be more than sufficient to createa buzz among the electorate to cast their votes to the NDA candidates in TN…” he added.

Parties lining up to Madurai

After the DMK hosted its general council meeting on June 1, the visit of Mr. Shah with the party workers and functionaries from southern districts of Tamil Nadu has once again underlined the importance of Madurai.

During the last Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Shah toured Madurai, Sivaganga, Ramanathapuram and a few more segments to campaign for candidates including O Panneerselvam and among others. But, after 2024, things have changed a lot with the BJP and AIADMK coming together now.

Leaders including Mr. Panneerselvam and TTV Dhinakaran are now in alliance with the BJP and thus it is expected to consolidate the votes against the DMK front.

According to political observers, the BJP, which pushed the AIADMK to the third place in Madurai in 2024 Lok Sabha poll by securing 2.20 lakh votes is confident of doing better next year. What is giving them the hope is the antiincumbency factor against the DMK government and the pre-poll pact with the AIADMK.