Thiruvananthapuram: As actor-turned politician Suresh Gopi on Thursday boarded flight to Delhi after accomplishing BJP's long pending dream of opening an account from Kerala, hopes are high that he will be gifted with a cabinet minister post in the third Narendra Modi cabinet.
Gopi, who received rousing receptions by party leaders, workers and supporters since Tuesday, expressed his desire to have a responsibility that empowers him to get things done for Kerala from various departments.
For the BJP, too, Gopi's performance as MP could be crucial to win more seats in Kerala in the coming elections, especially the 2026 state Assembly polls. The saffron party got a major boost as it came first in 11 of the 140 assembly segments in this Lok Sabha polls. The vote share of the party also increased from around 15 percent in 2019 to nearly 20 percent.
Though the BJP had won its maiden seat in Kerala assembly in 2016 (O Rajagopal at Nemom in Thiruvananthapuram), they lost it in the following election in 2021.
Gopi is learnt to have already lined up a series of projects ranging from financial support scheme for women to NH by-pass to ease the traffic congestion of Thrissur.
Amidst reports that the chaos over the conduct of Thrissur pooram festival just ahead of the polls had also helped in Gopi's thumping victory, Gopi told reporters that he has plans to make the conduct of Thrissur pooram festival a hassle-free experience.
Gopi also said that he would try to work for neighbouring Tamil Nadu too where the BJP could not win any seats this time.
Gopi enjoys a strong rapport with Modi which was evident from his daughter's wedding at Guruvayur temple. Modi even handed over garlands to the couple.
Meanwhile, there are also chances for a shake up in the BJP state leadership. Party senior woman leader Shobha Surendran is likely to get a more prominent place in the leadership as she had considerably increased the vote share of the party in Alappuzha by 11 percent, which is considered to be the highest among the BJP candidates in Kerala.
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