Veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader George Kurian on Tuesday resigned as the Union minister of state (MoS) for minority affairs and fisheries, following the expiration of his six-year Rajya Sabha term.
President Droupadi Murmu has accepted his resignation, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Tuesday.
“The President of India, as advised by the Prime Minister, has accepted the resignation of Shri George Kurian from the Union Council of Ministers, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution,” the Rashtrapati Bhavan said in a statement. After tendering his resignation, Kurian expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying it was “because of him” that he had the opportunity to be made a minister.
Apart from Kurian, Ravneet Singh Bittu, whose Rajya Sabha term is also coming to an end, was not renominated for the June 18 elections.
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Who is George Kurian?
Kurian, 65, was serving as the minister of state (MoS) in the third union cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi since August, 2024. He is a senior BJP leader who has been a member of the party since its inception in 1980, and has also practised as an Advocate at the Supreme Court of India.
{{/usCountry}}Kurian, 65, was serving as the minister of state (MoS) in the third union cabinet led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi since August, 2024. He is a senior BJP leader who has been a member of the party since its inception in 1980, and has also practised as an Advocate at the Supreme Court of India.
{{/usCountry}}Kurian's Rajya Sabha term expired on June 21, owing to which he had to give up his post. He was not renominated allegedly owing to the poor performance of the party in the Kerala Assembly elections.
Kurian was born on September 20, 1960, in Nambiakulam of Ettumanoor Municipality in Kerala's Kottayam District, according to the website of the minority affairs ministry. He completed his schooling in his hometown, following which he pursued a graduation and post-graduation in Law. He was sworn in as the union minister of state on June 9, 2024, and took charge in the ministry of minority affairs and ministry of fisheries, animal husbandry and dairying on June 11, 2024.
Prior to this, Kurian had served as the vice-chairman of the National Commission for Minorities and as officer on special duty (OSD) to the then union minister of state for railways, O Rajagopal.
‘Had never imagined…only because of PM Modi’: Kurian on ministerial berth
Following his resignation on Tuesday, BJP leader Kurian, in a post on his official Facebook account, said he had met PM Modi on June 22, a day after his Rajya Sabha term ended.
He expressed gratitude to PM Modi, saying he had "never imagined" he would hold a ministerial post. “My term in the Rajya Sabha was due to end on June 21. I got the opportunity to meet the Honorable Prime Minister only yesterday. I submitted my resignation letter yesterday itself,” Kurian said.
He added, “I had never imagined, not even in my dreams, that I would become a Union Minister. It was only because Modi ji was the Prime Minister that I was made a minister. I expressed my gratitude to him for that.”