Ready to take up any responsibility, says 'Metroman' E Sreedharan

Metroman' E Sreedharan on Sunday said he was ready to take up any responsibility given to him by the BJP, which he had recently joined.

Speaking at a rally attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, at nearby Shangumugham, Sreedharan said he wanted to utilise his energy for the state of Kerala.

"For the last 67 years I was a government servant. Many people have asked me why I ventured into politics after these many years. For 67 years, I worked as part of many projects for this country."


"I am still energetic and want to utilise my energy for the state of Kerala. Whatever responsibility is given to me I will take it up with all courage and energy," he said at the rally marking the culmination of the Vijay Yatra taken out by BJP state president K Surendran from Kasaragod to Thiruvananthapuram, ahead of the April 6 assembly polls.

Days ago, Sreedharan had said his main aim was to help the BJP to come to power and he was open to chief ministership, to which the party is yet to respond.

In the 2016 elections, the saffron party, had won only one seat in the 140-member assembly.

Shah also wrapped a shawl around Sreedharan welcoming him into the BJP.

Speaking at the rally, Shah was all praise for the 88-year old former technocrat, who was part of various development projects in the country.

"I would like to say a few words about Sreedhran ji. An engineer and a teacher, who was part of various developmental projects. He is known as Metroman because he constructed the first Metro in the country. But we cannot ignore his engineering marvel- the Konkan Railway- which connected southern India to the rest of the country in a rapid manner," Shah said.

"I am already 56. Many times, I have felt that it's time to stop. But even at his age, Sreedharan ji is energetic and ready to work for this country. I would like to salute him. The infrastructure developer, Metroman has decided to join BJP for the nation building," Shah added.

The 'Metroman', who is all set to contest the assembly polls on a BJP ticket, had recently resigned from the post of DMRC's Principal Advisor.

Sreedharan, now a member of the BJP state Election Committee, said he has requested the party leadership to field him from a constituency not far from his residence in Ponnani in Malappuram district.

Well-known Malayalam actor Devan, who merged his Kerala People's Party with BJP,was also present at the massive rally.