The decision, which has been widely welcomed, is in consonance with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s intent, signalled at the National Democratic Alliance’s meeting in the National Capital, to pursue inclusive politics.

It should also go a long way to allay fears that Kerala would be given the cold shoulder because of the State’s failure, once again, to send even a single BJP MP to the Lok Sabha.

Muralidharan was the right choice as he is a senior member of the BJP in the state with vast experience as an able organizer. Another plus point is that he has good rapport with a number of ministers in the Modi Government. The fact that he speaks excellent Hin di will also stand him in good stead in his new job. .

On his part, Muralidharan has made the right noises. The ever-smiling MP has made it clear that he would take up the issues faced by Kerala at the Central level and see that the state’s interests are safeguarded. A reassuring aspect is his announcement that he would go about his task in cooperation with the Pinarayi Vijayan Government.

His appointment as a minister will also have a bearing on the factionalism plaguing the state unit of the BJP. The group led by him will now have a greater influence with the central leadership of the party, which is bound to go by his advice in matters concerning the state unit of the BJP.

Meanwhile, the simmering factional feud is likely to boil over in the wake of the BJP’s failure to open its Lok Sabha account from Kerala. The Central leadership is unhappy about the ‘poor show’ in Kerala.

Not surprisingly, BJP state president P S Sreedharan Pillai had to bear the brunt of the criticism in the BJP’s core committee meeting. Pillai’s failure to leverage the Sabarimala issue to the desired extent drew flak from all sides.

The crisis could also result in a change of guard at the state level. The RSS is also said to be unhappy about the Kerala BJP’s failure to put up a better performance.(IPA Service)