President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the resignation of Union Minister of State L Murugan from the Union Council of Ministers, the Rashtrapati Bhavan said on Thursday. Murugan had stepped down on Tuesday, saying he wanted to return to Tamil Nadu and rebuild the BJP's organisation there from the ground up.
The acceptance, issued on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, takes immediate effect — and it has set off the speculation New Delhi runs on: is a long-rumoured reshuffle of the Union Cabinet finally around the corner?
What Rashtrapati Bhavan announced
The communique was crisp and constitutional. Quoting it verbatim: "The President of India, as advised by the prime minister, has accepted the resignation of Dr L Murugan from the Union Council of Ministers, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution of India."
The statement was issued on Wednesday, October 14, and made public on Thursday. Article 75(2) covers ministers holding office during the President's pleasure — in practice, on the Prime Minister's advice. The wording is routine. The timing isn't: Murugan is now the third Minister of State to leave the council in months.
Why L Murugan resigned: Tamil Nadu and the 2029 target
Murugan's letter to the Prime Minister left little room for guesswork: the L Murugan resignation was about going home to Tamil Nadu for organisational work.
"I requested our Prime Minister to relieve me from the Council of Ministers and the Rajya Sabha because I want to go to Tamil Nadu to strengthen our party," Murugan said.
In the letter, he struck a grateful note: "With humility and grateful heart, I therefore request you to relieve me of my responsibility as MoS and permit me to relinquish my membership of the Rajya Sabha, so that I may dedicate full time to strengthening the party in Tamil Nadu." He called his tenure a privilege, describing his rise from a family of daily wage labourers as a defining experience — then tied the exit to the next general election: "Now, I wish to return to the grassroots, stand with our 'karyakartas' and dedicate myself full-time to strengthening the BJP in Tamil Nadu ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. Nation First. Party Next. Self Last."
The third junior minister to walk out
Murugan's exit follows two others. George Kurian quit in June and Ravneet Singh Bittu in July, after the BJP chose not to renominate either for Rajya Sabha elections — departures that looked like the inevitable consequence of losing their parliamentary perch.
Murugan's case is different. He has been a Rajya Sabha member since September 2021 and was re-elected in April 2024 from Madhya Pradesh, with his tenure running to April 2030. He says he wants to give up that seat too — not something ministers do casually.
Ministers including Hardeep Singh Puri and B L Verma were not renominated to the Upper House yet continue in office, and two other Ministers of State — Pankaj Chaudhary and Harsh Malhotra — recently took charge of the BJP's Uttar Pradesh and Delhi units while keeping their portfolios. Stepping down was a choice, not a compulsion — which is why Delhi reads it as a signal.
Why it matters: the reshuffle question
Every ministerial exit in New Delhi gets the same treatment — instant reshuffle speculation — but this one has more fuel than most. Three junior ministers out in four months, and a Prime Minister who has kept everyone guessing about the timing of a Cabinet rejig. As multiple outlets put it, Murugan's exit has "fuelled speculation about an imminent reshuffle." A reshuffle is how a PM rewards allies, drops underperformers, and signals priorities — and ministers leaving "to strengthen the party" usually means the PM's office is clearing the decks for new faces.
The Tamil Nadu angle adds another layer. The BJP has long treated the state as its toughest southern frontier. Sending a former Union minister back for full-time organisational work there, with 2029 explicitly named, signals where the party thinks the next big fight is.
What happens next
Two things are on the clock: Murugan's Rajya Sabha seat, which he has sought permission to relinquish, and the reshuffle question — whether the Prime Minister uses this vacancy, and the ones before it, to bring new ministers in.
Watch for three signals: any BJP announcement about Murugan's Tamil Nadu role, the formal acceptance of his Rajya Sabha resignation, and fresh Rashtrapati Bhavan communiques about appointments to the Council of Ministers. In New Delhi, resignations are rarely just about the person leaving — they're usually about who's coming in.
Key Takeaways
- President Droupadi Murmu accepted L Murugan's resignation from the Union Council of Ministers on Thursday, October 15, 2026, on the Prime Minister's advice and with immediate effect.
- Murugan had resigned on Tuesday as Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs, saying he wants to return to Tamil Nadu to strengthen the BJP's grassroots organisation ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections.
- He has also sought permission to give up his Rajya Sabha membership, even though his term — re-elected from Madhya Pradesh in April 2024 — runs until April 2030.
- He is the third Minister of State to quit in recent months, after George Kurian (June) and Ravneet Singh Bittu (July), who left after not being renominated to the Rajya Sabha.
- Ministers including Hardeep Singh Puri and B L Verma continue in office despite not being renominated, making Murugan's voluntary exit stand out.
- The resignation has intensified speculation about an imminent reshuffle of the Union Cabinet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is L Murugan?
L Murugan is a BJP leader from Tamil Nadu who served as Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government. A Rajya Sabha member since September 2021, re-elected from Madhya Pradesh in April 2024, he has now resigned from the ministry and says he will also quit the Upper House.
Why did L Murugan resign?
In his resignation letter to Prime Minister Modi, Murugan said he wants to return to Tamil Nadu to strengthen the BJP's grassroots organisation and its cadre ("karyakartas") ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. He described his ministerial tenure as a privilege and framed the move with the slogan "Nation First. Party Next. Self Last."
When did President Murmu accept the resignation?
President Droupadi Murmu accepted the resignation on Thursday, October 15, 2026. The Rashtrapati Bhavan communique announcing it was issued on Wednesday, October 14, and states the acceptance was made on the Prime Minister's advice, with immediate effect, under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution.
Is L Murugan also quitting the Rajya Sabha?
He has said so. Murugan asked the Prime Minister to permit him to relinquish his Rajya Sabha membership along with his ministerial post. His Upper House term, after his April 2024 re-election from Madhya Pradesh, was due to run until April 2030 — so he is walking away with nearly four years of tenure remaining.
Who else has resigned from the Modi ministry recently?
Murugan is the third Minister of State to exit in recent months. George Kurian resigned in June and Ravneet Singh Bittu in July, both after the BJP did not renominate them for Rajya Sabha elections. Unlike them, Murugan still held a valid Rajya Sabha seat, which makes his departure a voluntary political choice.
Does this mean a Cabinet reshuffle is coming?
That's the speculation, not a confirmed fact. Multiple outlets report that Murugan's exit has fuelled talk of an imminent reshuffle of the Union Council of Ministers, given the string of junior-minister departures. No official announcement of a reshuffle has been made; the acceptance communique only covers Murugan's resignation.
What were L Murugan's portfolios?
He served as Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and for Parliamentary Affairs — two portfolios he held in the Modi government until his resignation on Tuesday, October 13, 2026. The President formally accepted that resignation two days later, on Thursday, October 15, bringing his ministerial tenure to an end with immediate effect.
Sources
- The Times of India — "President Murmu accepts L Murugan's resignation amid buzz over Union Cabinet reshuffle" (October 15, 2026): timesofindia.indiatimes.com
- The New Indian Express — "President Murmu accepts resignation of Union minister L Murugan" (October 15, 2026): newindianexpress.com
- The Economic Times — "President Murmu accepts Minister L Murugan's resignation" (October 15, 2026): economictimes.indiatimes.com