Lagatar24 Desk
Thiruvananthapuram: Former Union Minister and technocrat-turned-politician Rajeev Chandrasekhar is poised to take charge as the next president of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Kerala unit. The announcement follows his official nomination filing on March 23, as confirmed by outgoing state president K Surendran on social media platform X.
The BJP’s core committee, which met in Thiruvananthapuram on the same day, unanimously selected Chandrasekhar for the top post. The meeting was attended by senior party figures including Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar and co-in-charge Aparajita Sarangi, a sitting Lok Sabha MP.
Chandrasekhar’s elevation comes at a crucial juncture as K Surendran completes his five-year term amid internal dissent and ahead of key local body and Assembly elections in Kerala. Other frontrunners reportedly included senior leaders Shobha Surendran and MT Ramesh, but the leadership chose Chandrasekhar, possibly to project a technocratic and modern image in the state.
Chandrasekhar’s Political Trajectory
At 60, Rajeev Chandrasekhar brings significant experience to the role. A three-term Rajya Sabha MP from Karnataka, he began his political journey in 2006 as an Independent. By 2018, he had joined the BJP and was re-elected to the Upper House. In 2021, he was inducted into Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet as Minister of State for Electronics and IT.
Despite his recent electoral loss in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to Congress MP Shashi Tharoor by a margin of 16,077 votes from Thiruvananthapuram, Chandrasekhar has been laying political groundwork in Kerala. He recently purchased a residence in Thiruvananthapuram and has been actively engaging with local issues, including participating in the ASHA workers’ ongoing agitation.
His presence at BJP headquarters during key inductions and his role as a prominent voice in Modi’s administration further strengthen his profile as he prepares to lead the party’s charge in a traditionally Left-Congress dominated state.
