Kerala Students Evacuated From Ukraine Pay For Union MoS Muraleedharan's Security Deposit For LS Polls

Accompanied by their parents, the students presented Muraleedharan with a sum of Rs 25,000 as a security deposit for his nomination to Attingal constituency in Thiruvananthapuram district.

In the Attingal constituency, Muraleedharan is set to conest against sitting Congress MP Adoor Prakash and CPI-M legislator V. Joy.

A display of solidarity unfolded as a delegation of students from Kerala, rescued from the turmoil in Ukraine in 2022, stepped forward to strengthen the Lok Sabha election campaign of Union Minister V. Muraleedharan. On Friday, the students, led by Sourav and Sai Sruthi, who had been airlifted from Ukraine following Russia's attack, handed over the requisite security deposit for nomination papers to Muraleedharan, who is vying for the Attingal constituency in Thiruvananthapuram district.

Accompanied by their parents, the students presented Muraleedharan with a sum of Rs 25,000 for his candidacy. 

The evacuation of these students was part of India's robust rescue operation, named 'Operation Ganga' by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with Muraleedharan spearheading the efforts to repatriate the stranded individuals to Kerala. In total, the Kerala government had identified 2,320 students from the state in Ukraine, all of whom were successfully brought back to safety.

Sai Sruthi, a student at Zaporizhzhia University in Ukraine at that time, as per ANI, said, "We were evacuated due to the efforts of PM Modi ji and Minister V Muraleedharan. As a token of gratitude and respect, students and parents collected some money, and we came here today to present this amount as a deposit for his (V. Muraleedharan's) election."

Muraleedharan expressed gratitude to the students for their contribution, stating, "I extend my heartfelt thanks to both the parents and the students who were evacuated by the Government of India during the conflict in Ukraine. Over the past five years of PM Narendra Modi ji's government, the most fulfilling endeavours for me personally have been the numerous evacuation operations."

With elections looming, Muraleedharan faces formidable opponents in the form of sitting Congress MP Adoor Prakash and CPI-M legislator V. Joy in the Attingal constituency.

Kerala gears up for the Lok Sabha elections in the second phase on April 26.