Loganathan Murugan (born 29 May 1977) is an Indian politician and advocate currently serving asminister of state in theMinistry of Parliamentary Affairs, andMinistry of Information and Broadcasting. On 7 July 2021, he was made a union minister of state prior to which he was the state president of theTamil Nadu unit of theBharatiya Janata Party.[3][4]
Murugan was born into aTelugu-speaking.[5][6][7] He was born to L Varudammal, Loganathan on 29 May 1977 in Konur ofNamakkal district of Tamil Nadu.[1][8][9]
Murugan did his law degree atTamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law College, Chennai and got his master's degree and PhD atUniversity of Madras. Inspired byHindutva ideology during his college days in 1997, he joined theAkhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad,[10] and later theRashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. He has practiced law for at least 15 years also serving as the Standing Counsel to the Government of India atMadras High Court.[11][3][12] As a lawyer He has appeared in various cases on behalf of the BJP.[13]
He is fluent inEnglish,Tamil andTelugu.[14]
Murugan served as the national general secretary of thescheduled caste (SC) division of the RSS while he was in the RSS.[15]
In the2011 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, he contested from theRasipuram seat on a BJP ticket but got only 1800 votes. He served as the in charge ofKerala for some time.[10] He served as the vice-chairman of theNational Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) from 2017 to 2020.[16][17] Murugan later resigned his post in the NCSC before one year of his term's end and met senior BJP leaders.[10]
During the agitations againstNEET in Tamil Nadu, Murugan claimed that there were 'external forces' in theSuicide of S. Anitha and said that NEET is required.[18][19] Murugan claimed that there had been an increase oflove jihad in Tamil Nadu in January 2020.[20][21]
On 12 March 2020, he was made chief of the BJP Tamil Nadu unit. He is the first from the Dalit community to hold the post.[16]
Murugan was supportive of theCitizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019.[22][23][20] He was not very close to the leaders of Tamil Nadu BJP but was close with the National BJP leaders.[20] Murugan attempted to lead the BJP's Vel Yatra twice in 2020 to build support forHindutva politics in Tamil Nadu, but was arrested both times.[24] Chief Minister of PuducherryV Narayanasamy said Vel yatra is a move by BJP to fomentcommunal disharmony.[25] He called the2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest in Delhi as "false propaganda" in December 2020.[26]
He contested the 2021 Tamil Nadu assembly elections fromDharapuram and lost to DMK'sN. Kayalvizhi by 1,393 votes.[27]
On 7 July 2021, Murugan was sworn in as theMinister of State in theMinistry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying andMinistry of Information and Broadcasting during the Cabinet reshuffle.[28] Murugan is the first from the Arunthathiyar community to be made a Union minister since Independence.[29] He had 21 criminal cases against him in August 2021, the most of any minister in the Modi's cabinet.[30] Murugan claimed there were "vested interests" behind the2020–2021 Indian farmers' protest in northern states in October 2021.[31]
He is member ofRajya Sabha representingMadhya Pradesh.[32]
| Commission / Office | Position | Tenure | |
|---|---|---|---|
| From | To | ||
| National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) | Vice-Chairman | 2017 | 2020 |
| Bharatiya Janata Party | State-President of Tamilnadu | 11 March 2020 | 7 July 2021 |
| Designation | Department | Party | Constituency | Ministry | Term of Office | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| From | To | ||||||
| Minister of State | Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying | BJP | Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha fromMadhya Pradesh | Modi II | 7 July 2021 | 09 June 2024 | |
| Minister of State | Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying | Ministry of Information and Broadcasting | Modi II | 7 July 2021 | Incumbent | ||
| Elections | Constituency | Party | Result | Votes Gained | Vote % | Opposition Candidate | Opposition Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Rasipuram | BJP | Lost | 1,730 | 0.07 | P. Dhanapal | AIADMK |
| 2012 (By-election) | Sankarankoil | BJP | Lost | 1,633 | 0.1 | S. Muthuselvi | AIADMK |
| 2021 | Dharapuram | BJP | Lost | 88,593 | 45.67% | N. Kayalvizhi | DMK |
| Elections | Constituency | Party | Result | Votes Gained | Vote % | Opposition Candidate | Opposition Party |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Nilgiris | BJP | Lost | 232,627 | 22.83% | A. Raja | DMK |
| Position | Party | Constituency | From | To | Tenure | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha (1st Term) | BJP | Madhya Pradesh | 27 September 2021 | 2 April 2024 | 2 years, 188 days | |
| Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha (2nd Term) | 3 April 2024 | 2 April 2030 | 5 years, 364 days | |||
He was born in Paramathi in theNamakkal district of Tamil Nadu into a Telugu speaking family
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