On the basis of which leaders is BJP dreaming of victory in Kerala? Who do Modi-Shah trust?

2025 was a great year for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). At the beginning of the year, BJP got a bumper victory in the Delhi Assembly elections. After this, BJP got a resounding victory in many by-elections as well as Bihar Assembly elections and Nitish Kumar from NDA once again became the Chief Minister. Apart from all these elections, BJP also performed unexpectedly in the local body elections of Kerala in the last month of the year and won 50 out of 100 seats in the Municipal Corporation of the capital Thiruvananthapuram. With this, BJP got its first mayor in Kerala, V.V. Got it as Rajesh. Party workers from Kerala to Delhi are excited with this victory and the party is hoping to perform well in the upcoming assembly elections also.

Bharatiya Janata Party is searching for political ground for itself in Kerala. Since independence, till now Kerala has been ruled by Congress and Left parties. At present Pinarayi Vijayan from the left alliance LDF is the Chief Minister. At the same time, UDF under the leadership of Congress is trying to return to power after 10 years, but BJP also has high hopes from the assembly elections to be held after a few months. The party is working continuously in Kerala and its results are also visible. For the first time in 2024, the party had won one seat in the parliamentary elections and now the party has given an unexpected performance in the civic elections also.

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The onus will be on these leaders

Bharatiya Janata Party in Kerala does not have any big face at the state level. Unlike the politics of North India, BJP cannot gain power here even in the face of central leadership. In such a situation, many leaders of Kerala BJP will have the responsibility of making the party win and strengthening the organization. Many leaders are active in BJP and these leaders can play an important role for the party in the upcoming assembly elections.

Rajeev Chandrashekhar big face

At present, Kerala President Rajiv Chandrashekhar has a big responsibility in the Bharatiya Janata Party. He was given the responsibility of party president in March 2025. 60 year old Rajeev Chandrashekhar has nearly two decades of political experience. He has worked as Union Minister of State in the Central Government in departments like Electronics, IT, Skill Development, Entrepreneurship, Jal Shakti. He was a member of Rajya Sabha three times. Apart from this, he has also served as the national spokesperson of BJP and also worked as the Vice President of Kerala.

In 2024, he contested the Lok Sabha elections against Congress leader Shish Tharoor but lost by 16,077 votes. Rajiv Chandrashekhar, a native of Kerala, was born in Ahmedabad, Gujarat and is now heading the BJP in his parents’ birthplace Kerala.

He led the party in the recently held civic elections and in these elections the party won one municipal corporation and two municipalities. After these elections, Rajiv Chandrashekhar said in an interview to Indian Express that we know that BJP is far behind LDF and UDF but BJP is emerging as a strong political force in Kerala. Its impact will be clearly visible in the coming assembly elections. He also said that this time the contest will be between UDF and NDA.

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Suresh Gopi

Suresh Gopi is one such name of Kerala BJP who helped BJP win the Lok Sabha seat for the first time in Kerala. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he defeated the Left and Congress candidates from Thrissur Lok Sabha seat in Thiruvananthapuram district of Kerala. Suresh Gopi is a well-known name in the Malayalam film industry. He has also been a singer and television presenter. Suresh Gopi is the Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas and Tourism in the current Union Cabinet.

Suresh Gopi had joined BJP in 2016 itself. He contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Thrissur but lost. After this, he also had to face defeat in the 2021 assembly elections. Suresh Gopi can be very beneficial for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the assembly elections to be held in 2026. He has got a place in the central government from Kerala quota and the central leadership continues to have confidence in him. He has also contested the assembly elections in 2021. In such a situation, Gopi can actively work for the party in the elections to be held after a few months.

Of. Surendran

Ken. Surendran is continuously making efforts to strengthen the organization of Bharatiya Janata Party in Kerala. Before Rajiv Chandrashekhar, he was on the post of State President. While handing over the command of the party to Rajeev Chandrashekhar, he had said that in the last decade, BJP has become stronger in Kerala and today it has reached such a position that no one can ignore BJP in Kerala. He also said that ideological change is taking place in Kerala. Ken. Surendran is a veteran leader of BJP and has been the party president for many years. In the 2024 general Lok Sabha elections, he contested from Wayanad Lok Sabha seat against senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi but he came third after Annie Raja.

He played an active role during the Sabarimala protests, due to which more than 200 cases are registered against him. Of. Surendran started his political career with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and rose through several positions in the organization to reach the post of party president. In the 2021 Assembly elections, he contested from two seats, Konni and Manjeshwaram but he lost from both the seats. From the organizational point of view, in the upcoming elections. Surendran can play an important role in the party. Till now. Surendran contested four Lok Sabha elections and five assembly elections but till now he has not been successful.

V. Muraleedharan

V. Muraleedharan is a senior leader of Kerala BJP. He entered BJP when Atal Bihari Vajpayee was the PM and after holding different posts, he reached the post of Vice President and President of Kerala BJP. He contested the assembly elections for the first time from Kozhikode in 2009 and also contested the 2014 Lok Sabha and 2016 assembly elections but lost. Under his leadership, BJP’s vote share in Kerala has increased from 6.4 percent in 2009 to 10.8 percent in 2014.

In April 2018, he was sent to the Rajya Sabha and after the second term of the BJP government in 2019, he got a place in the cabinet as Minister of State. V. Muraleedharan is considered close to the central leadership.

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M.T. Ramesh

M.T. Ramesh is a senior leader in Kerala BJP and a leader with long experience in the work of the organization. He was the General Secretary of the state for a long time and is known as a disciplined organizer. He plays an important role in formulating the party’s strategy. He has worked to expand the cadre of Kerala BJP at the booth level. Till now he has contested many elections as a party candidate but till now he has not got success. His identity has been established as a staunch opponent of the Left and is often in the news for his aggressive rhetoric.

When will the elections be held?

The tenure of the current Legislative Assembly of Kerala is from 24 May 2021 to 10 May 2026. Elections are likely to be held in April-May 2026. The number of MLAs in Kerala is 140 and the influence of left parties and Congress is more here. Pinarayi Vijayan of CPIM is the Chief Minister of Kerala. VD Satheesan of the Congress party is the leader of the opposition. Kerala is currently run by the LDF coalition government led by CPIM and Congress is leading the UDF coalition to challenge them. While the UDF alliance is hoping to return to power, the BJP is also ready to threaten in the Assembly. The central leadership of the party is active in Kerala. Recently, BJP has become the mayor of the capital Thiruvananthapuram and 45 years of Left rule has ended. BJP is ready for the coming elections but the path for the party is not easy.