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Actor Mithun Chakraborty becomes a Kolkata voter ahead of Bengal polls
Speculations regarding the actor contesting the elections were fuelled when he said in a recent interview that if the party wants him to fight the polls, he will
Bollywood actor Mithun Chakraborty has become a Kolkata voter, days after joining the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), raising speculations on whether he will be fielded as a candidate in the upcoming assembly polls.
The actor, who was a Mumbai voter, has registered himself as a voter from Kashipur–Belgachia, his family members have confirmed.
“He has enrolled himself as a voter from my house. Whenever he comes to Kolkata for some personal reason, he stays at my house,” Sharmistha Sarkar, the actor’s cousin, told the media.
Chakraborty, a former Trinamool Congress (TMC) Rajya Sabha MP, joined the BJP on March 7 in a rally addressed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Kolkata’s Brigade Parade Ground.
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Sarkar, however, could not say whether Chakraborty will be contesting the polls. She said: “Dada (older brother) is a legendary superstar. He will suit in any position. It is good to see him active again,” she added.
Speculations regarding the actor contesting the elections were fuelled when he said in a recent interview that if the party wants him to fight the polls, he will.
In another interview, the BJP’s national general secretary and West Bengal in-charge Kailash Vijayvargiya told the media that even though Chakraborty had earlier declined to contest the polls during in an initial discussion, Vijayvargiya will speak to him if the party wants.
Last week, the BJP had announced the names of candidates for the last four phases of polls including Kashipur – Belgachia. The candidate from Kashipur – Belgachia, Tapan Saha, however refused to contest saying that he never joined the BJP, causing much embarrassment to the party.
Mithun is now a voter of the same constituency in Kolkata, which has fuelled further speculations.
“Mithun da becoming a Kolkata voter doesn’t mean that he will be contesting the polls. It is up to the party to decide,” Swapan Dasgupta, senior BJP leader and former Rajya Sabha member, told the media.
