A leading leader of the Hindu Ezhava community in Kerala, Vellapally Natesan, said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will return to power in the coming Lok Sabha elections.
But he added that his Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam will not have any political leaning.
"My feeling is Modi will certainly retain power as he has the knack of roping in all to get the required numbers. Modi certainly has relevance today," Natesan told the media here.
Natesan is the General Secretary of the SNDP Yogam, the socio-cultural body of the Hindu Ezhava community that constitutes a majority among Hindus in the state.
Natesan's son Tushar Vellapally is the President of BDJS, the second biggest ally of the BJP- led NDA in Kerala.
"In the past, I have committed mistakes and travelled on a helicopter provided by the BJP. Today I have no role in BDJS. I am no longer part of it," said Natesan.
On the Sabarimala issue, Natesan gave a clean chit to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and said both the Congress and the BJP were on the wrong path.
"The Kerala government has no role in taking women to the Sabarimala temple. They only obeyed the Supreme Court orders.
"The recent meeting by Ayyappa Sanghom (in Thiruvananthapuram) was organised by elitist Hindus. These elitists find it difficult to accept communities like ours," he said.
--IANS
sg/mr
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