‘Want to strengthen BJP in Tamil Nadu’: L Murugan resigns; 3rd Union minister to quit in 4 months

L Murugan requested PM Modi to relieve him of his duties and said that he wanted to dedicate his time to strengthening the BJP in Tamil Nadu.

Union minister of state (MoS) for information and broadcasting L Murugan on Tuesday announced his resignation from the Rajya Sabha and the Union council of ministers on Tuesday, saying he would return to Tamil Nadu to focus on politics in the southern state.

New Delhi, Aug 13 (ANI): MoS L. Murugan speaks in the Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon session of Parliament, in New Delhi on Thursday. (Sansad TV/ANI Video Grab) (Sansad TV)

Murugan is the third minister after former MoS for railways and food processing Ravneet Singh Bittu and former MoS for minority affairs and fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying George Kurian to exit in less than four months, stoking speculation that a rejig in the council of ministers was imminent.

While there is speculation that the rejig may see several new faces, it is unclear whether minister of petroleum and natural gas Hardeep Puri and MoS for consumer affairs, food and public distribution, and minister of social justice and empowerment BL Verma — who did not get renominated to the Rajya Sabha earlier this month from Uttar Pradesh — will continue to serve as ministers.

Murugan – who also served as the junior minister of parliamentary affairs – was a former president of the BJP’s Tamil Nadu unit and was elected to the Upper House from Madhya Pradesh in April 2024. This was his second term in the Upper House; he was first elected in 2021. His current term in the Rajya Sabha was to conclude in 2030.

In a five-page letter to PM Modi, Murugan said he was motivated by the his dedication to India, Tamil Nadu and the BJP and felt that he must now give more of himself to the work that first brought him into public life.

“With humility and a grateful heart, I therefore request you to relieve me of my responsibilities as minister of state and permit me to relinquish my membership of the Rajya Sabha, so that I may dedicate myself full-time to strengthening the party in Tamil Nadu. I want to go to every village and every street, meet our people, stand beside our karyakartas and help expand the party’s presence in every part of the State. I want to carry your message of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwaas to every person, and help every family see its place in the journey toward another term under your leadership…”

A Dalit leader from Arunthathiyar community, Murugan was credited with galvanising the BJP cadre in Tamil Nadu with his Vel Yatra, which was considered to have paved the way for the party carving out space as a key opposition party in Tamil Nadu. After he was moved to the Upper House, Murugan was replaced as state president by K Annamalai who was seen as a firebrand leader, but did not get along well with the party’s ally, the AIADMK.

Murugan asserted that his decision was borne out of his desire to serve India and Tamil Nadu, but there was no clarity on why he chose to resign from the Rajya Sabha. State leaders, even office bearers, can be members of Parliament. “I come from a very poor family. My parents, who worked as daily wage labourers and cattle grazers, continue to lead a simple life in Konur village. They could never have imagined that their son would one day serve in the Union government,” he wrote to the PM.