V Muraleedharan: The lone cabinet member from Kerala

Vellamvelly Muraleedharan came a long way to become a minister in the Modi cabinet. For his loyalists, it was a pleasant surprise and for his distracters a pain. He was chosen by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah as a strategy to win Kerala for the future.

Born in a Congress family in Thalassery, a Communist stronghold in Kannur district, V Muraleedharan joined the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) during his student days.

Muraleedharan headed the local unit of the ABVP during Emergency. His oratory skills and leadership qualities helped him to rise in the party lines. He is a graduate in English literature and language from Brennen College in Thalassery.

After the death of his father, he joined the industries department as a lower division clerk for a short period. Later, he quit his job and joined the BJP as a full-time worker and moved to Kozhikode.

He left for Mumbai when he was appointed as ABVP's national general secretary in 1994. In 1999, he was appointed as vice chairman of Nehru Yuva Kendra. He was elected as the BJP's state unit chief for two terms from 2010 to 2015. Muraleedharan was elected to Rajya Sabha from Maharashtra in 2018.

"His elevation as a cabinet minister in Modi's second innings is a clear indication to bluffers and non-performers in Kerala BJP. Amit Shah wants results and Kerala BJP has failed to deliver it. Now he will decide the future course of action," a senior BJP leader told India Today.

From morning onwards, Kerala media speculated that former Mizoram governor Kummanam Rajasekharan and Alphonse Kannathanam would get a berth in the Cabinet. However, both were sidelined as the first choice.

According to sources in the BJP, the central leadership found Kannathanam short of delivery as a Union minister.

"Now we have a mission- operation Kerala. And we deploy effective people for the role," a BJP leader said.