Kannur — Union Minister of State for Petroleum and Tourism, actor-turned-politician Suresh Gopi, created a flutter in political circles on Sunday after expressing his desire to step down from his ministerial position. Citing a significant drop in income due to the demands of public office, Gopi also took the unusual step of recommending a replacement from within the party: veteran BJP leader C. Sadanandan Master.
Addressing party workers in an event also attended by Sadanandan Master, Gopi said his brief stint as a Union Minister had severely impacted his primary source of income—his film career.
”I am saying here with sincerity that Sadanandan Master should be made a (Union) minister after removing me. I believe that it will become a new chapter in the political history of Kerala,” Gopi stated. The actor-politician, who was nominated as a Rajya Sabha MP in 2016, noted that he never sought the ministerial role and that the party may have appointed him in recognition of the mandate following his Lok Sabha poll performance.
Gopi, who is the sole BJP MP from Kerala, added that he prays that Sadanandan Master’s newly established MP office in Kannur will soon be upgraded to a Ministerial office.
The recommended replacement, C. Sadanandan Master, is a senior BJP leader from Kannur district with a history of political struggle. He is a survivor of political violence, having lost both his legs during an alleged attack by CPI(M) workers in 1994. Master was recently nominated to the Rajya Sabha, which Gopi hailed as a significant political breakthrough for the party in northern Kannur.
The unexpected resignation offer has sparked intense speculation about the dynamics within the Kerala unit of the BJP and the broader challenges faced by professionals transitioning into full-time ministerial roles.
