BJP Member of Parliament (MP) Sunny Deol, who has been facing flak for his continuous absence from his Lok Sabha constituency Gurdaspur, has said no to contesting any elections.

In an interview with a TV news channel, the Bollywood celebrity and first-time MP said he had decided to focus on his career as an actor. “I don’t want to fight any election. I believe my chunav (election) will be as an actor,” he said when asked if he would contest the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Advertisement

“I think I’ll serve the nation as an actor which I’ve been doing. I have full confidence that what I can give to the youth, to the country, is being a good actor and bringing out good projects,” he added.

In his debut election as a BJP candidate, Deol defeated sitting MP and Congress candidate Sunil Jakhar by a margin of 82,459 votes from Gurdaspur the Lok Sabha seat in Punjab. But since he was hardly seen in the constituency after winning the election, he was facing criticism from rival political parties.

Even when many villages of his constituency were reeling under devastating rains and floods, the actor was busy promoting his latest movie ‘Gadar 2’ much to the discomfiture of the locals.

Gurdaspur residents allege that besides being absent, the actor-turned-politician failed to bring a single developmental project to the constituency and didn’t even care to contact his voters when they needed him the most. The last time he was seen in his constituency was in 2020 when he met senior officials to discuss the Covid-19 pandemic and other issues.

Following his prolonged absence in the constituency and even in the Lok Sabha where his attendance was just 19 per cent, “missing” posters of the MP emerged in 2020 near the railway station of Pathankot, which is part of the Gurdaspur constituency. The posters read: “Gumshuda ki talash: MP Sunny Deol” (Search for missing MP Sunny Deol).

One indication of his lack of interest in politics is that Deol did not come to campaign for BJP candidates in the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections despite being in high demand due to his celebrity status.

In the entire Majha region which consists of four districts of Punjab (Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Gurdaspur, and Pathankot), the BJP could secure only one seat — Pathankot.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, BJP won this seat after fielding actor Vinod Khanna who represented the constituency till 2017. But his death in the same year necessitated a byelection, which Congress’ Sunil Jhakar won.

Sunil Jhakhar, who has now joined the BJP and is heading the saffron party’s Punjab unit, continued to be the MP from Gurdaspur till 2019.