Actor and BJP candidate from Thrissur Suresh Gopi, on Tuesday, revealed that he is not interested in contesting the 2021 Kerala Assembly elections. “I chose to contest because the BJP leadership compelled me to contest and I am obeying the party decision,” said Suresh Gopi, who was addressing the media at a hospital in Ernakulam, where he was undergoing treatment for pneumonia. His statement comes two days after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its list of candidates for the Kerala Assembly election.
Suresh Gopi had been undergoing treatment for pneumonia at a private hospital in Kochi. In the second week of March, the actor developed a fever during the shoot of Joshiy’s Paappan. After undergoing treatment, he was discharged from the hospital on Tuesday. “The doctors have advised me to take rest for at least 10 days and that I can start campaigning after the COVID-19 vaccination,” he told the reporters.
Speaking about his candidacy from Thrissur, Suresh Gopi said that the BJP leadership had given him the option to choose from four Assembly seats. “I informed them that I would be ready to contest from a seat they suggest. However, Prime Minister Narendra Modi wished that I contest from Thrissur,” he added.
Rajya Sabha MP Suresh Gopi, who joined the BJP in 2016, also said that more than chances of winning, BJP has chances of competing in Thrissur. “Nobody can assess victory just yet,” he said, adding, “People in Thrissur have seen me campaigning during the Lok Sabha and know my work as the Rajya Sabha member. Let them assess me accordingly.”
Suresh Gopi had contested from the Thrissur Lok Sabha constituency in the 2019 general election. He, however, lost the election but managed to increase his vote share in the constituency.
Suresh Gopi also spoke to the media about Lathika Subash, who resigned from the post of Kerala Pradesh Mahila Congress president and tonsured her head denying her a ticket. “She is younger than me. But I felt sad when I saw her in that state as I last saw my mother without hair on her head,” he said.
Watch: Suresh Gopi addressing the media after being discharged from hospital
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