Our doors open for all: Akhilesh on BJP MP Varun Gandhi

Amid speculations over BJP Pilibhit MP Varun Gandhi’s political future, Samajwadi Party (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav on Friday hinted that doors were open for him even though the SP had declared its candidate for the seat.

Akhilesh was speaking to reporters in Sitapur where he had gone to meet the party’s jailed senior leader and former Uttar Pradesh minister Azam Khan.

Meanwhile, suspense continued if the saffron party would be fielding Varun from Pilibhit this time. While the seat will go to polls during the first phase of voting on April 19, the last day for nomination filing for the phase is March 27.

Also, Bhagwat Saran Gangwar, the SP’s pick for Pilibhit, had on Thursday said he would be happy to make way for Varun if the party chose him.

When asked if he had a soft corner for Varun, Akhilesh replied: “Our doors are always open for everyone.” On Gangwar’s comments on Varun, he said: “He (Gangwar) is a very senior, mature and seasoned leader of the party.”

For the last one year, there has been intermittent speculations that the SP may support Varun’s candidature if he decides to contest outside the BJP.

While Gangwar, a five-time SP MLA from Nawabganj in the adjacent Bareilly Lok Sabha constituency, was named by the SP for Pilibhit on Wednesday, the BJP is yet to announce its pick for the seat. Earlier, Akhilesh and party national general secretary Ram Gopal Yadav had added fuel to the fire when they said that the SP would take a call on Varun if the BJP did not field him. Also, rumours of Varun deciding to contest the seat as an independent candidate if the BJP denied him ticket have caused unease in the BJP camp.

On Wednesday, however, the MP’s representative, MR Malik, told media persons that he had bought four sets of nomination papers on the instructions of Varun, who would again become the BJP candidate from the seat.

However, Gangwar, has been telling reporters in Bareilly, said, “I will do whatever my leader (Akhilesh) asks me to do. I will make way for him (Varun) and then will work to make the SP’s Bareilly candidate, Praveen Aron, win.”

A two-term MP from Pilibhit (2009 and 2019) and one-term from Sultanpur (2014), Varun has been in the limelight for raising the issues of farmers, unemployment and youths, going against the party line. He was also critical of the licence suspension of the Sanjay Gandhi Hospital in Amethi.

However, with the Lok Sabha elections approaching, he has changed his stance about the party’s policies. He also attended the Amrit Bharat Station scheme launch in Pilibhit.

The BJP, meanwhile, has released two lists of candidates for the Lok Sabha seats in various states. The national party has announced candidates for 51 Lok Sabha seats in Uttar Pradesh and most sitting MPs were repeated. The delay in the announcement of the candidates for the remaining 29 Lok Sabha seats has added to the uncertainty. It is speculated that it is these 29 seats where the BJP might not repeat its sitting MPs.