'If Not As An MP, Then As A Son...': Varun Gandhi's Note To People Of Pilibhit As BJP Denies LS Poll Ticket

As the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) denied him a ticket from Pilibhit, the Lok Sabha seat that always remained either to him or his mother Maneka Gandhi since 1996, BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Thursday penned an emotional letter to the people of his constituency asserting that his relationship with them will remain intact till his last breath.

Replacing Gandhi, the BJP has fielded Uttar Pradesh Public Works Minister Jitin Prasada from Pilibhit. Prasada had filed his nominations on this seat on Wednesday.

About Gandhi's note to the people of Pilibhit

Sharing the letter on X, Gandhi said, his relationship with Pilibhit is one of love and trust which is far above any political calculations.

"Today, when I am writing this letter, countless memories have made me emotional. I remember that little three-year-old child who came to Pilibhit for the first time in 1983 holding the fingers of his mother. Little did he know that one day this land would become his work place and the people here would become his family", Gandhi said while recollecting his association with the constituency.

"The ideals given by Pilibhit were instrumental in my upbringing and development not only as an MP but also as a person. Being your representative has been the greatest honour of my life and I have always raised my voice for your interests to the best of my ability," he said.

Varun Gandhi said his tenure as an MP may be coming to an end, but his relationship with Pilibhit can't end till his last breath.

"If not as an MP, then at least as a son, I am committed to serve you throughout my life and my doors will always remain open for you as before. I came into politics to raise the voice of the common man and today I seek your blessings to continue doing this work always. Even if I have to pay any cost for this," he added.

BJP denies poll ticket to Varun Gandhi

For the first time in around three decades, the Maneka Gandhi-Varun Gandhi mother-son duo will not be in the fray from the Pilibhit constituency which is located in the Terai belt bordering Nepal.

The denial of a ticket to Varun Gandhi this time did not come as a surprise as Gandhi, for a number of times, raised his voice against his own party-led government over inflation, unemployment and several other pressing issues.

His mother Maneka Gandhi, the sitting MP from Sultanpur, was, however, given another chance from the same seat by the BJP.

Gandhi's relationship with Pilibhit since 1996

Since 1996, the Pilibhit seat has remained either with Maneka Gandhi or her son Varun Gandhi.

Maneka Gandhi won the seat on a Janata Dal ticket in 1989, lost in 1991 and won again in 1996. She won from the constituency in 1998 and 1999 as an Independent candidate. She won the seat in 2004 and 2014 as a BJP candidate.

Varun Gandhi won the seat in 2009 and 2019 as a BJP candidate.