In 1984, when the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and fellow actor M. G. Ramachandran (M.G.R.) was unable to campaign in the state assembly election due to his being hospitalized in the US. N.T.R., who was a close friend of M.G.R.The mother of all rath yatras. The Hindu (1 April 2004). Retrieved on 21 November 2018. and R. M. Veerappan who was handling the party affairs, campaigned for the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), despite the fact that party was an ally of the Congress at the time. As leader of the National Front, he campaigned extensively for the constituent parties when they faced elections, again using his Chaitanya Ratham campaigning concept.
