Rajeev Chandrasekhar took charge as the State president of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)‘s Kerala unit at the State Council meeting of the party in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday (March 24, 2025).
Making the official announcement, Pralhad Joshi, the BJP’s central observer, said Mr. Chandrasekhar was unanimously elected to the post. K. Surendran, who vacated the post after a tenure of five years, handed over the party flag to Mr. Chandraekhar amid loud cheers from the party workers.
Although many names were speculated ahead of the organisational elections, all of it were put to rest on Sunday (March 23) when the BJP national leadership nominated the entrepreneur-turned-politician and former Union Minister. The change at the helm comes months ahead of crucial local body elections in 2025 as well as the Assembly elections in 2026, in which the BJP is seeking to build on the gains in recent years.
Mission in Kerala
Speaking after taking over as the party’s State president, Mr. Chandrasekhar said the central leadership had tasked him with leading the mission “to make a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government in Kerala a reality.”
Union Minister Pralhad Joshi (right) offering sweets to newly elected Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar in the presence of outgoing president K. Surendran and party’s Kerala in-charge Prakash Javadekar in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday. | Photo Credit: NIRMAL HARINDRAN
“In the past years, the country has witnessed the politics of performance under Narendra Modi, turning India into a major economy. This is what we want to replicate in Kerala. People in the State have no trust in politics after 70 years of false promises of both fronts. We need to change Kerala from a place with ‘nokkukooli’ to one with investments and jobs. To bring about this change, there should be an NDA government in the State. This is the task that has been given to me. I will return only after fulfilling this mission. We need to work as a team to take this development vision to each house in Kerala,” said Mr. Chandrasekhar.
Clear ideological shift: Surendran
Outgoing party president Mr. Surendran said that “a clear ideological shift” has started becoming visible in Kerala as the people have warmed up to the BJP’s ideology. He dismissed criticisms against Mr. Chandrasekhar’s alleged inexperience in organisational and political work, citing his work on the ground during the 2024 Lok Sabha election campaign in Thiruvananthapuram.
“Over the past decade, the BJP has become a force that cannot be ignored any longer in Kerala. We have been able to bring about systematic changes within the party to increase representation of all sections in leadership positions. Among the 280 mandalam presidents, 39 are women, while four of the 30 district committees are headed by women. Three district committees are headed by Christians. The party also has 31 mandalam presidents from Scheduled Caste communities,” said Mr. Surendran.
Joshi slams Left govt
Mr. Joshi said Mr. Chandrasekhar has a clear blueprint for the expansion of BJP in Kerala. He lashed out at the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government, accusing it of financial indiscipline, corruption and of failing at maintaining law and order.
He said the State government has been “habitually blaming” the Modi government for its various failures, including in the payment of honorarium to Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHAs).
Prakash Javadekar, the party’s Kerala in-charge, said every deserving party member, including Mr. Surendran who has vacated the State president’s post, will get other major responsibilities.
Published - March 24, 2025 03:25 pm IST
