Deputy Prime Minister Lal Kishenchand Advani's Bharat Uday Yatra entered Andhra Pradesh on Tuesday afternoon for a three-day journey.
Enthusiastic Bharatiya Janata Party workers welcomed Advani when his bus crossed over from Karnataka at the border village of Chiragpalli near Zaheerabad town in Medak district.
Advani's Bharat Uday Yatra: The Full Coverage
Addressing a meeting at Zaheerabad, Advani asked voters to support the BJP and Telugu Desam Party, its ally in the state.
Since the town has a sizeable Muslim population, Advani said the good turnout pointed to the fact that all communities were unanimous that India should continue its march towards development.
He said his yatra was aimed at conveying the message of development and good governance.
He exuded confidence that Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee would get another five-year term.
State BJP president N Indrasena Redy, Union Minister of State Bandaru Dattatreya and other state leaders accompanied Advani on his journey from Zaheerabad.
With the outlawed People's War asking people to stop the yatra from entering the state, the police made elaborate arrangements to prevent any untoward incident.
Besides the National Security Guards, the police will take all measures to provide security, Director General of Police S R Sukumara said in Hyderabad.
Traffic was restricted on a 100-km stretch on National Highway 9 as the yatra made its way through Zaheerabad, Sadashivpet and Sangareddy, where Advani addressed the public.
After a public meeting at Patancheru town and a roadside meeting at Chandanagar, Advani is expected to arrive in Hyderabad via Kukatpally in the evening to address roadside meetings at Ameerpet, RTC Crossroads, Dilsukhnagar and Puranapul.
Chief Minister and TDP boss N Chandrababu Naidu will address the gathering at RTC Crossroads with Advani.
The yatra is scheduled to cover 11 Lok Sabha constituencies and 35 assembly segments in eight districts in the backward and naxalite-affected Telangana region.dvani is expected to address meetings at 33 places.