Dr L Murugan resigned on 13 October 2026 as Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs and as a Rajya Sabha member from Madhya Pradesh. President Droupadi Murmu accepted the ministerial resignation on the advice of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Murugan said he wants to work full time to strengthen the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in his home state of Tamil Nadu.
Who Is L Murugan?
Dr L Murugan is a BJP leader from Tamil Nadu who served as a Union Minister of State from July 2021 to October 2026. He is a lawyer by training, a former vice chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC), and a former president of the BJP in Tamil Nadu.
Murugan was born on 29 May 1977 at Konur in Namakkal district of Tamil Nadu to Loganathan and L Varudammal. He studied law at the Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law College in Chennai and completed his master’s degree and doctorate in law at the University of Madras. He practised as an advocate in the Madras High Court and served as Standing Counsel for the Government of India in that court.
He joined student and social work through the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the student wing linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and later worked in the RSS. From 2017 to 2020, he served as vice chairman of the NCSC, the constitutional body that safeguards the interests of Scheduled Castes. On 12 March 2020, the BJP appointed him president of its Tamil Nadu unit. He was the second Dalit leader to hold that post. He led the party during the 2021 Tamil Nadu Assembly election, in which the BJP won four seats after a gap of nearly two decades, though he himself lost from Dharapuram by 1,393 votes. He had earlier contested from Rasipuram in 2011.
Which Portfolios Did L Murugan Hold?
Dr L Murugan was the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs at the time of his resignation. A Minister of State assists the Cabinet Minister who heads the ministry and handles specific work assigned by the Prime Minister.
Murugan was first inducted into the Union Council of Ministers on 7 July 2021. In that first term, he served as Minister of State in the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying along with Information and Broadcasting. After the 2024 Lok Sabha election, he was given charge as Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs in June 2024 and continued in those roles until October 2026.
The two ministries he served in have distinct mandates. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) is one of the oldest ministries set up after Independence. Its first minister was Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The ministry shares information about government policies through print, electronic and digital media. It also oversees broadcasting, films and digital content. It looks after public broadcasters All India Radio and Doordarshan through Prasar Bharati, which was created under the Prasar Bharati Act, 1990. It is organised into four wings for information, broadcasting, films and digital media.
The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs (MPA) acts as the link between the government and Parliament. It was created as a Department in May 1949 and later became a full ministry. It plans government business in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, tracks dates for summoning and prorogation of Houses, manages Consultative Committees of Members of Parliament, follows up on assurances given by ministers in Parliament, and gives secretarial help to the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs. At the time of Murugan’s resignation, the Cabinet Ministers in charge were Ashwini Vaishnaw for Information and Broadcasting and Kiren Rijiju for Parliamentary Affairs (as of October 2026).
Why Did L Murugan Resign?
Dr L Murugan said he resigned to return to Tamil Nadu and work full time for the BJP organisation in the state. He linked the decision to preparation for the 2029 Lok Sabha election and to standing with party workers at the grassroots.
Murugan wrote a four page letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 13 October 2026. He described serving under Modi as the greatest honour of his life and said he had seen close quarters of the Prime Minister’s work over five years in the Council of Ministers. He requested the Prime Minister to relieve him of ministerial duty and to permit him to give up his Rajya Sabha membership so he could dedicate full time to strengthening the party in Tamil Nadu. He also referred to the public enthusiasm he witnessed during Modi’s visit to Tamil Nadu two days earlier.
The resignation added to talk of a wider reset in the Union Council of Ministers. It came in a season when other Ministers of State had also stepped down after changes in their parliamentary tenure, including resignations linked to Rajya Sabha terms ending in mid 2026. The government has not announced a successor for Murugan’s specific Minister of State charge at the time of publication.
To Whom Does a Union Minister Give Resignation?
A Union Minister submits resignation to the Prime Minister. The President then accepts it on the advice of the Prime Minister under clause (2) of Article 75 of the Constitution. The resignation takes effect immediately once the President accepts it.
Article 75 deals with the Union Council of Ministers. It states that ministers hold office during the pleasure of the President. In practice, this means the Prime Minister decides the composition of the team. When a minister wishes to quit, the convention is to write to the Prime Minister and request to be relieved. The Prime Minister forwards the advice to the President. The President’s Secretariat then issues a formal communique. In Murugan’s case, the communique said President Droupadi Murmu had accepted the resignation of Dr L Murugan from the Union Council of Ministers with immediate effect under Article 75(2).
When a minister resigns, the portfolio does not remain permanently vacant. The Prime Minister can assign the additional charge to another minister until a new appointment or reshuffle is made. Recent examples in 2026 followed the same pattern, with Cabinet Ministers given additional charge of Education and other portfolios after resignations.
To Whom Does a Rajya Sabha Member Give Resignation?
A member of the Rajya Sabha submits resignation to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. The Chairman is the Vice President of India, who serves as the ex officio Chairman under Article 64 of the Constitution.
A resignation from the House is separate from a resignation from the ministry. A minister must be a member of either House within six months of appointment under Article 75(5), but giving up a ministry does not automatically end House membership. A separate letter is needed for the House seat. Once the Chairman accepts the resignation, the seat falls vacant and the Rajya Sabha Secretariat notifies the vacancy. The Election Commission of India (ECI) then conducts a by-election if the remaining term warrants it.
L Murugan Rajya Sabha Tenure and the Madhya Pradesh Bypoll
Dr L Murugan hails from Tamil Nadu but represented Madhya Pradesh in the Rajya Sabha. Members of the Rajya Sabha are elected by the Members of the Legislative Assembly of a state, so they represent a state rather than a Lok Sabha constituency. Murugan was re-elected from Madhya Pradesh in April 2024 for a six year term that was due to run until 2 April 2030.
His resignation created an early vacancy of more than three years. The vacancy took effect on 14 October 2026, a day after he submitted his letters. The ECI announced a by-election to fill this single seat. Polling and counting are scheduled for the same day, which is the normal practice for a Rajya Sabha by-election where only elected MLAs vote.
| Event in Madhya Pradesh Rajya Sabha Bypoll | Date |
|---|---|
| Vacancy due to Murugan resignation | 14 October 2026 |
| Issue of notification | 26 October 2026 |
| Last date for filing nominations | 2 November 2026 |
| Last date for withdrawal | 5 November 2026 |
| Polling and counting of votes | 12 November 2026 |
| Original term of the seat | Until 2 April 2030 |
The BJP is in government in Madhya Pradesh, so its candidate is widely expected to win the seat. The winner will serve only the remainder of the term until April 2030, not a fresh six year term.
Key Takeaways
- Dr L Murugan resigned on 13 October 2026 as Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs.
- A Union Minister submits resignation to the Prime Minister, and the President accepts it under Article 75(2) on the Prime Minister’s advice.
- A Rajya Sabha member submits resignation to the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, who is the Vice President of India.
- Murugan represented Madhya Pradesh in the Rajya Sabha with a term due until 2 April 2030, and the vacancy took effect on 14 October 2026.
- The Rajya Sabha by-election in Madhya Pradesh to fill the seat is scheduled for 12 November 2026.
- Murugan was born on 29 May 1977 in Namakkal, Tamil Nadu and served as BJP Tamil Nadu president from March 2020 and NCSC vice chairman from 2017 to 2020.
