General Election 2019: Sunny Deol joined the BJP on Wednesday (File)
Actor Sunny Deol's candidature in Gurdaspur has upset late actor-turned-parliamentarian Vinod Khanna's wife Kavita Khanna, who was hoping that the party would field her from the seat her husband won four times. All options are open, she says, including contesting the election as an independent. Nothing, however, has been decided yet, she added.
"I feel betrayed. I also feel that the wishes of people who wanted me as their MP were ignored," Kavita Khanna was quoted by news agency PTI.
"I am weighing all my options. I have not decided anything (yet). I have not taken any decision on any issue," she added.
Vinod Khanna, a Bollywood star of the 70s, had won the Gurdaspur seat in 1998, 1999, 2004 and 2014. He had died in 2017.
In the 2017 bypoll after Mr Khanna's death, there were speculation of Kavita Khanna's nomination from the seat. However, businessman Swaran Salaria had been chosen over her. Mr Salaria was dealt a massive defeat by Congress's Sunil Jakhar, who won by a margin of close to 2 lakh votes.
Ms Khanna claimed people of the constituency wanted her as their representative to parliament.
"I have faith in God. Life is a journey. I have worked here for 20 years. When Vinod ji was unwell, I used to meet people of the constituency. People wanted me as their MP," she said.
Sunny Deol, 62, debuted in films with the movie "Betaab" in 1983. Over the years, he excelled in action hero roles in films like "Ghayal", "Gadar: Ek Prem Katha", "Damini" and "Border".
He is the third Deol to join politics - and the BJP - after his father Dharmendra and his wife Hema Malini, also mega actors for decades.
"Like my father joined Atal Bihari Vajpayee, I have decided to join Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I want PM Modi for the next five years," the actor said in a media conference.