K. Surendran is a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Kerala and a former state president from 2020 to 2023, known for his role in strengthening the party’s organisational base in a state traditionally dominated by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF). Emerging from student and youth movements associated with the BJP, he rose through the party ranks by taking on key organisational responsibilities and spearheading campaigns across Kerala.
In the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections, Surendran contested from Manjeshwaram in Kasaragod district.
Background:
K. Surendran was born on 10 March 1970 in Ulliyeri, Kozhikode district. He completed his higher education with a B.Sc. in Chemistry from Zamorin’s Guruvayurappan College, Kozhikode.
He began his political journey through the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing of the RSS, where he was actively involved in student politics and organisational work. In the early years of his career, he held several roles in cooperative and social organisations, including Director of the North Malabar District Co-operative Marketing Society, President of Desa Seva Samskarika Kendram, and Founder Director of the National Yuva Co-operative Society. He also served as an advisory board member of Nehru Yuva Kendra.
Surendran later moved to Kasaragod district, where he strengthened his grassroots connect by learning local languages such as Tulu and Kannada, enabling him to engage more effectively with the region’s diverse population.
About his constituency:
{{/usCountry}}Surendran later moved to Kasaragod district, where he strengthened his grassroots connect by learning local languages such as Tulu and Kannada, enabling him to engage more effectively with the region’s diverse population.
About his constituency:
{{/usCountry}}K. Surendran is contesting from Manjeshwaram in the 2026 Kerala Assembly elections which is one of the 140 Legislative Assembly constituencies in Kerala and forms part of the Kasaragod district . Located in the northernmost part of the state, it shares proximity with the Karnataka border.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, the seat was won by A. K. M. Ashraf of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a constituent of the United Democratic Front (UDF) against Surendaran by a margin of 845 votes.
What happened in the previous elections?
K. Surendran has contested multiple elections across Kerala, though without securing a legislative or parliamentary victory so far.
In the 2011 Kerala Assembly elections, he contested from Manjeshwaram but lost to IUML candidate P. B. Abdul Razak by 5,828 votes, securing 33.8% vote share. In the 2016 Assembly elections, he again contested from Manjeshwaram and lost by a razor-thin margin of just 89 votes, making it one of the closest contests in the state.
He also contested the 2009 and 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Kasaragod but was unsuccessful. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, he contested from Pathanamthitta and finished third.
In the 2021 Kerala Assembly elections, Surendran contested from two constituencies Konni and Manjeshwarambut lost both. Most recently, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he contested from Wayanad against Rahul Gandhi but lost.
Despite repeated electoral defeats, his consistent presence in key contests and organisational leadership has kept him central to the BJP’s political strategy in Kerala.