Thiruvananthapuram: The Bharatiya Janata Party government on Wednesday nominated actor Suresh Gopi to the Rajya Sabha.

The actor said that his nomination was a gift by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the people of Kerala.

“It’s an occasion for joy for everyone. I had been hinted about the nomination earlier,” said Gopi from his house at Sasthamangalam here.

The Hindu has quoted party sources as saying that the actor's name will be included in the list of prominent citizens being nominated to the Upper House by the President of India.

The announcement of nomination came after the erstwhile action hero of Malayalam films met BJP president Amit Shah in New Delhi on Sunday last.

Notably, the BJP's star campaigner had refused to contest Kerala Assembly Election from Thiruvananthapuram constituency.