Jayalalithaa greets 'good friend' Modi on his elevation as BJP poll chief

Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa on Monday greeted "good friend" and her Gujarat counterpart Narendra Modi on his elevation as Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) election campaign committee chief, but declined to comment on the development, insisting it was that party's internal matter.

Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa on Monday greeted "good friend" and her Gujarat counterpart c on his elevation as Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) election campaign committee chief, but declined to comment on the development, insisting it was that party's internal matter.

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Asked about the anointment of Modi as chairman of BJP's Election Campaign Committee for 2014 Lok Sabha polls at the Goa conclave on Sunday, she said it was an internal matter of the BJP and that it would not be proper for her to comment.

"Politically I do not think it would be proper for me to make a comment on what has happened in another party, but at a personal level, Modi is a very good friend of mine, I have high regard for him as an able administrator," she said. "My good wishes are always with him whether he wins election in Gujarat or achieves an elevation in his own party. I'm happy for him."

The chief minister was proceeding to New Delhi to meet Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia to discuss about the state's annual plan for 2013-14.

Modi was among a set of select leaders who had attended Jayalalithaa's swearing-in as chief minister in 2011 and the AIADMK supremo had returned the favour by attending his swearing-in ceremony last year after he won his third term.