Overview
- Shah arrived in Kerala and began the day with a darshan and pooja at Sree Padmanabhaswamy Temple before meeting newly elected local body representatives.
- He is set to chair the BJP state core committee in Thiruvananthapuram, attend a conclave, and meet NDA leaders as he launches the Assembly poll campaign.
- State leaders describe the engagement as booth-level mobilisation and stock-taking geared toward a Prime Minister Narendra Modi–centred narrative and a planned PM visit.
- The push follows a drop to about 14.7% in the local body vote share from roughly 19.3% in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, even as the party won 50 of 101 wards in the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation to install its first mayor in Kerala.
- Reports indicate the BJP is prioritising roughly 25–35 Assembly constituencies and targeting about a 25% vote share to improve its leverage in the state.