New Delhi, Jul 6 (IANS) : Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Varun Gandhi on Sunday claimed that underworld criminals arrested in Delhi a day earlier were plotting to kill him and urged the Home Minister to take urgent action.   

"The plot against my life by dangerous underworld criminals apprehended yesterday by Delhi Police exemplifies exactly the kind of terror and violence against which I stand and have been warning against. This is the second time in recent months that such a conspiracy has been uncovered," Varun Gandhi, the son of BJP leader Maneka Gandhi and grandson of the late Indira Gandhi, said in a statement here.

Six sharpshooters of Chhota Shakeel - one of India's most wanted gangsters - were arrested from different parts of the capital on Saturday, with police saying "some VVIPs" were on their hit list.

Urging the Home Minister to take immediate action, Varun Gandhi said: "The home ministry should respond with the urgency and responsibility that behoves those entrusted with the safety of a whole nation. May it not later be said that petty political considerations interfered with the course of official duty."

Varun Gandhi, who won the Lok Sabha election from Pilibhit constituency in Uttar Pradesh, created a big controversy with his reported hate speeches against Muslims and was even arrested for it.