BJP candidate Jitin Prasada files nomination from Pilibhit, Varun Gandhi remains absent

Pilibhit: Uttar Pradesh Minister Jitin Prasada, who replaced party leader Varun Gandhi as the BJP candidate from the Pilibhit constituency, on Wednesday filed his nomination papers.

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BJP MLAs from all four assembly constituencies in Pilibhit -- Sanjay Gangwar, Baburam Paswan, Vivek Verma and Swami Prakhashanand -- are the proposers in Prasada's nomination papers, the BJP candidate's lawyer Saroj Kumar Bajpai told PTI.

Varun Gandhi was not present when Prasada filed his nomination papers. The local leaders remained tight-lipped about his absence.

"Prasada has submitted the nominations in four sets in Hindi language before the District Election Officer. He has shown his total movable and immovable assets worth Rs 15 crore," Bajpai said.

Before filing the nomination papers, Prasada offered prayers at the Yashwanti Devi temple situated in the city. Subsequently, he addressed an election meeting organised in the temple premises.

Claiming his victory from the seat, Prasada, who is a PWD minister in the Yogi Adityanath government, said, "I thank the national and the state leadership for fielding me in the election. I will work to strengthen Narendra Modi by winning the elections from Pilibhit Lok Sabha." The seat was held by the BJP for past four Lok Sabha elections. Varun Gandhi is the incumbent BJP MP on the seat.

Prasada had won the Lok Sabha polls in 2004 on a Congress ticket from Shahjahanpur seat. In 2009, he won from Dhaurahara seat and was made Union minister in the Congress government.