Bollywood actor Sunny Deol and first-time Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur in Punjab, recently announced that screenwriter Gurpreet Singh Palheri will look after the affairs of his constituency on behalf of the actor. This news has triggered a row and has not gone down well with the BJP.
The Bollywood actor turned MP issued a declaration and made it clear on his official letterhead that Palheri will henceforth look after the affairs of his constituency. Party insiders said that his ‘aide’ had also been authorised to take up issues related to Gurdaspur with Deputy Commissioner Vipul Ujwal.
"Palheri's appointment is a clear-cut indication that he has been authorised to chair meetings, including review meetings of the Central government-sponsored schemes, on behalf of Deol," a senior state BJP leader told IANS.
"This is unfair of Deol as he is accountable to the people who voted for him," he added.
Actor Sunny Deol was not available to comment on this matter. Palheri is an apolitical man and has no political experience, which is why the Bollywood actor’s decision comes off as surprising for a lot of people.
Palhari has acted in Sunny Deol's movies, including 'Yamla, Pagla, Deewana', 'Ghayal, Once Again', 'Son of Sardar' etc. The Gurdaspur constituency has been held by Bollywood stars over two decades now. It was represented by actor-turned-politician Vinod Khanna from 1998 until his death in 2017. After his death, there was speculation that his wife Kavita Khanna wanted to be nominated from the seat. But instead, Deol was fielded.
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