Gurdaspur, July 1: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Sunny Deol has appointed Gurpreet Singh Palheri as his "representative" to take care of his Gurdaspur Lok Sabha constituency in his absence. Reacting to the development, the Congress party slammed Sunny Deol and dubbed the move a "betrayal" with the voters of Gurdaspur. The Congress government in Punjab, however, has provided Palheri security and official vehicle.

On Monday, Deol, on his letterhead, declared Palheri as his "representative" and "authorised" him to attend meetings and follow important matters pertaining to my parliamentary constituency, Gurdaspur with concerned authorities. It remains to be seen if an MP can technically appoint a "representative" to take care of his/her constituency. Palheri said his appointment was a part of a plan to provide 24/7 help to constituents. Sunny Deol, BJP Lawmaker From Gurdaspur, May Lose His Seat Over Campaign Overspending.

"All he wants to say is that we are available 24X7. It is wrong to assume that he is running away from his responsibilities. He is visiting the constituency regularly and will continue to do it. He has prepared a team and we all are a part of it. I am not the lone representative. The letter is irrelevant in that context. He simply means that every ground level worker can be approached in Gurdaspur and he will help you," Palheri was quoted by News18 as saying. Sunny Deol, BJP Lawmaker From Gurdaspur, Takes Oath As Lok Sabha MP – Watch Video.

Reacting to Deol's move, Punjab cabinet minister and Congress leader Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa hit out at the BJP lawmaker. "Sunny Deol has betrayed voters of Gurdaspur constituency by appointing a representative. How can an MP appoint his representative? Voters have elected Sunny Deol as MP, not his representative," Randhawa said.

Last month, the first-time MP had faced flak from after posting a video of his vacation in Kaza on Instagram. Deol beat Congress's Sunil Jakhar with a margin of 82,459 votes in the Lok Sabha election.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 01, 2019 10:12 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).