Actress Madhuri Dixit Nene has denied reports of her contesting the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from Pune on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket. Her spokesperson, while denying the report said 'all such reports were false'.
"This news is false and speculative," the spokesperson told mediapersons.
Earlier, reports surfaced on media that Dixit was likely to contest from the Pune Lok Sabha constituency on a BJP ticket. A senior state BJP leader had told media on Thursday that Madhuri's name has been shortlisted for the Pune Lok Sabha seat.
"The party is seriously considering giving candidature to Madhuri Dixit in the 2019 general elections. We think the Pune Lok Sabha constituency will be better for her," he said.
"The party is in the process of finalising the list of probables for several Lok Sabha seats and Dixit's name has been shortlisted for the Pune Lok Sabha constituency...she is being seriously considered for it," the leader said.
During the party’s 'Sampark for Samarthan' programme in June, the BJP chief Amit Shah had met the actor at her residence in Mumbai.
In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP had snatched the Pune Lok Sabha seat from the Congress, with Anil Shirole winning by a margin of over three lakh votes.
On the plans to field the actor, a senior BJP functionary had said, "Such tactics were implemented by Narendra Modi in Gujarat when he became the chief minister for the first time. He changed all the candidates in local bodies election and the party reaped benefits of that decision."
"As fresh faces were introduced, there was nothing to criticise them with. It left the opposition shocked and the BJP won maximum seats and retained power," he said.
According to the leader, a similar experiment was also successfully carried out in Delhi local bodies polls in 2017, where all the sitting councillors were denied tickets. The BJP won the seats and retained the control, he said.
Madhuri, who entered the industry in 1984 with "Abodh", has remained a pivotal part of the Indian entertainment industry and has enthralled fans through meaty roles in films like "Tezaab", "Ram Lakhan", "Dil", "Beta", "Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!", "Anjaam", "Mrityudand", "Pukar", "Dil To Pagal Hai" and "Devdas". She also starred in "Gulaabi Gang".
She took a break after marriage and returned to Bollywood with "Aaja Nachle" in 2007.
At the moment, she is busy with "Kalank" and "Total Dhamaal".
