Talent, not family background, should matter in politics:Varun

Lamenting the nepotism and dynastic politics, BJP MP Varun Gandhi on Friday said that had he not been born in a political family, he would have been standing behind some politician.

If I was not born in a political family, then I would have been standing behind some politician. Ideally, youths should be given a chance on the basis of their capabilities and talent, he said at an event organised at VSSD college in Nawabganj here.

The BJP MP from Sultanpur said, The biggest shortcoming of our nation is that we are not able to move beyond nepotism and nowadays 80 per cent of the young politicians are related to some political family. A nation's progress is not possible without the progress of its youth, he said. Nowadays, people are becoming Naxals in Bastar. Why were daciots present in Uttar Pradesh's Bundelkhand for so many years? Why did youths become terrorists in Punjab? Why is it so that boys from Azamgarh went to Dubai and joined hands with the underworld. This happens only when the common man's hope is reduced to zero, Gandhi said. He said that we must not shy away from giving Prime Minister Narendra Modi due credit for the election we have won. We have won the election in his name.

People have given us mandate for the nation's development, he said. Our main purpose of entering politics is that we have to instil hopes in the minds of as many people as we can, he said. Gandhi made an appeal to the youngsters telling them not to vote for corrupt people, but for those who talk about the development of the nation.

Varun Gandhi is the grandson of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. He is the son of Sanjay Gandhi and Union Cabinet Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi