Mithun Chakraborty becomes BJP’s chief ministerial face in Bengal

Speculation is rife that Barisal-born Bollywood actor Mithun Chakraborty may soon join India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) that has not yet been able to zero in on its chief ministerial face in the poll-bound eastern state of West Bengal. The Indian state and Bangladesh share a land border and a common language, reports UNB.

What has fuelled the speculation is Mithunda’s (as he is affectionately called) hour-long meeting with the chief of BJP’s ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), Mohan Bhagwat, over breakfast at the 70-year-old actor’s posh Madh Island home in Mumbai on Tuesday morning.

Though Mithunda brushed aside the speculation during his interaction with the media later in the day, saying the meeting was more of “a spiritual connect” between them, sources told UNB that BJP would prefer to bet on a “fresh face” in Bengal politics rather than projecting one of the three current contenders for the coveted post.

“BJP state president Dilip Ghosh, and Trinamool Congress turncoats Suvendu Adhikari and Mukul Roy are all eyeing for the chief minister’s post in West Bengal. Though Ghosh is the frontrunner, the BJP high command could well opt for a fresh face as projecting one of them could lead to factionalism in the party’s state unit,” sources said.

Mithunda, however, told the media that it was just a “spiritual relationship” with Mohan Bhagwat. “I have a spiritual relation with him.It is a very deep spiritual relation. There was a plan that he would come to my home when he visits Mumbai. It so happened that I returned to Mumbai from Lucknow after a shoot and he too is in Mumbai.”