The Tamil Nadu BJP Unit has canceled its 'Vetrivel Yatra' on Wednesday owing to Cyclone Nivar, which will be making landfall during the midnight hours of November 25 and early morning hours of November 26 between Karaikal in Puducherry and Mamallapuram in Chennai as a very severe cyclonic storm. 

Vetrivel Yatra has been one of the electoral propagandas of the Tamil Nadu unit of the Central ruling party ahead of the state legislative elections. The BJP unit had launched the month-long campaign on November 6 by defying the ban from state ruling ADMK government, which had denied its permission for the campaign. The BJP had planned to cover the six adobes of Lord Murugan in Tamil Nadu. 

While the BJP had carried out the campaign in some of the parts of the state, it has planned to cover the rest of the parts during which the state got ready to brace up for Cyclone Nivar. As the state government has declared a public holiday for the state, suspended public transports, and closed government offices due to the cyclone, the BJP unit has announced that it had canceled Vetrivel Yatra. 

While addressing the reporters in Trichy on Wednesday, Tamil Nadu BJP President L Murugan said that the party has canceled Vetrivel Yatra. He said the yatra has been canceled in the remaining locations except in Tiruchendur, where the yatra will be concluding on December 5 as scheduled. 

He said that the yatra was held in Karur on Tuesday and the party has planned to conduct the yatra in Thanjavur, Nagapattinam, Trichy, Theni, and Madurai. However, due to Cyclone Nivar, the yatra at these locations has been canceled and the party will conduct the final leg of the yatra at Tiruchendur on December 6. The state BJP president had claimed that the yatra had seen huge support and response from people. 

Murugan said that after worshipping Lord Muruga in four other Arupadai Veedu temples, the party will conduct the final programme in Tiruchendhur as scheduled. By commending Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami for initiating precautionary measures to tackle the cyclone, Murugan stated that BJP will join hands with the state government in helping the people during the cyclone and added that the party members had already started helping the people in evacuation and relief efforts.