Padmaja Venugopal, Daughter Of Late Congress Stalwart K Karunakaran, To Join BJP Thursday: Report

Former Chief Minister and Congress leader K. Karunakaran”s daughter Padmaja Venugopal will join the BJP on Thursday, according to local media reports from Kerala. The latest development has emerged following several denials from Ms Venugopal and her party sources after a report said earlier on Wednesday that Padmaja, also the sister of K Muraleedharan, one the tallest Congress leaders in the state, would be joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led party.

Currently in Delhi, reports have said, Padmaja is holding talks with BJP national leaders. Padmaja has, reportedly, told her close friends that the reason behind the decision is that the Congress party leadership has continuously ignored her concerns.

Malayala Manorama reported that, the problems started when the district leaders stopped Padmaja from getting into Priyanka Gandhi”s vehicle during the last assembly election campaign rally in Thrissur. Padmaja contested in the Thrissur constituency in the last two Assembly elections but did not win. In 2004, Padmaja contested from Mukundapuram (Chalakkudi after delimitation) Lok Sabha constituency, but lost to Lonappan Nambadan.

She has also been alleging that, though the party had given her chance to contest in elections, there had been backstabbing from the party and party functionaries during elections.

Earlier in the day, Padmaja said that she had heard a news in some media that she was going to join the BJP and did not know where it came from. Also, Padmaja herself took to Facebook in the evening to deny this. The Facebook post read, “It was a joke, I didn”t think it would turn out like this.” Currently, the post has been deleted.

Padmaja is currently one of the General Secretaries of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee.

If she joins BJP, this will be the second instance in the last one year in which an offspring of a former Congress Chief Minister joining the BJP – the first instance being Anil K Antony, son of senior Congress leader AK Antony. BJP has nominated Mr Anil, party’s national secretary and spokesperson, as its candidate for Pathanamthitta Lok Sabha constituency for the upcoming elections.