For L Varudammal, 59, and her husband Loganathan, 68, life goes on as usual in a Tamil Nadu village– toiling in the fields, standing in queues for doles and eking out a meagre living. That their son L Murugan is a  union minister now has not changed the way they live, at least not yet.

After the village landlord had given the permission to speak, Varudammal said, “What should I do if my son becomes a Union minister… We didn’t do anything for his (career) growth,” Varudammal told the Times of India. Just minutes earlier, she was bent over a field plucking weeds and clearing bushes. In another field, Loganathan shoveled sand and levelled the ground.

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Hailing from the Arunthathiyar community, a Dalit subsect, the couple live in a small asbestos-roofed dwelling near Namakkal and wor as coolies, daily-wage earners and whatever odd job they can find, the report adds. They do not own any land and support their younger son’s widow and her children too.

Their son L Murugan was inducted into the Cabinet by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a recent reshuffle and holds the post of the minister of state for Information and Broadcasting. When they heard the news of their son making it to the Modi ministry, they were busy working in the fields and did not stop.

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And when Murugan called to inform them of his elevation, the parents wanted to know if the was superior to even the BJP state president post he held for about a year. Murugan was appointed the BJP president earlier this year just before the assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.

Speaking about his son’s childhood, Loganathan said that Murugan studied in government schools before moving to Chennai’s Ambedkar Law College. Loganathan had to borrow money from friends and acquaintances for Murugan’s college education.

Varudammal says that they used to go and stay with their son in Chennai but could not adjust there. “We could not fit into his busy lifestyle and we preferred to return to Konur,” she said, the report added.

Neighbours in the village say that there is no change in the couple’s attitude. A villager said that Loganathan was standing in the queue for COVID-related dole and when told that he could jump the queue he preferred to wait for his turn, the report added.

“Our son has reached a high position. As parents, this is more than enough for us,” the proud parents say.