After expressing her "disappointment" over the denial of ticket from the Gurdaspur Lok Sabha seat, Kavita Khanna, wife of late Union minister and actor Vinod Khanna, termed BJP nominee Sunny Deol as "capable and talented" and said Punjab needs him.

"Our capable and promising candidate Sunny ji... I am today happy that I can now welcome Sunny ji in Gurdaspur family. For 21-years, they (people of Gurdaspur) showered us their love and supported us," Kavita said at a rally held before Deol filed his nomination papers here.

Union ministers Jitendra Singh,V K Singh, Vijay Sampla and many state BJP and SAD leaders were also present at the rally.

Kavita Khanna, who was a ticket aspirant from the Gurdaspur seat, said the blessings of her late husband were with him. Vinod Khanna represented the seat four times in the Lok Sabha.

"I am sure that Vinod ji is part of this happiness and I am also confident that he is blessing you (Deol)," she said.

Kavita further exuded confidence that Deol would realise the dreams of Vinod Khanna for the Gurdaspur constituency.

"Sunny ji, Punjab needs you. I know you have come here to serve people of Punjab and the country with full dedication and sincerity," she said.

Actor Vinod Khanna died in 2017 at the age of 70 after battling cancer for many years.The saffron party had nominated Vinod Khanna fromGurdaspur parliamentary seat in 1998 for the first time and he had managed to unseat veteran Congress leader and five-time MP Sukhbuns Kaur Bhinder.

He had joined the BJP in 1997.

Notably, after being denied ticket by the BJP at the last moment, Kavita Khanna had said she "felt betrayed" and "felt abandoned and rejected".

However, she buried the hatchet and had announced not to contest the polls as an Independent candidate.

Not finding any local leader suitable, the BJP sprang a surprise with the nomination of Bollywood actor Sunny Deol from the Gurdaspur seat.