‘Hand-picked by RSS chief’, Mithun Chakraborty expected to play ‘big role’ in Bengal BJP

Mithun Chakraborty’s induction into BJP comes as party looks to challenge Trinamool Congress in 2021 assembly elections, with sights set on forming first-ever govt in Bengal.

Veteran Bollywood actor Mithun Chakraborty with PM Narendra Modi at a BJP rally in Kolkata Sunday | ANI

Kolkata: Dressed in dhoti-kurta, an attire associated with ‘bhadralok Bengali (Bengali gentleman)’, yesteryear Bollywood superstar Mithun Chakraborty, 70, announced his return to politics Sunday during a BJP campaign rally also attended and addressed by PM Narendra Modi.

His entry into the BJP comes over four years after he quit the Trinamool Congress amid the storm kicked up by the Saradha Ponzi scam.

BJP leaders said RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had been key to scripting Chakraborty’s comeback to politics. Just two weeks ago, Chakraborty had met Bhagwat over breakfast at his residence in Mumbai. 

Speaking to ThePrint, BJP sources said Chakraborty, “handpicked by Bhagwat”, has returned to politics as the RSS chief’s emissary for Bengal.

They did not want to specify the exact role etched out for the dance superstar, but BJP sources said he is expected to play a “bigger role” than a “routine candidate or a star campaigner”. They did not rule out the possibility of him being considered as the party’s CM face in the state. 

“We will probably not promote him or anyone as CM candidate going by our party’s policy, but he is handpicked by Mohan Bhagwat ji. So, he is not a routine member or a candidate. He will play a larger role,” said a senior BJP leader.

A second senior BJP leader referred to Chakraborty as an “RSS recruit”. “The top faces in the BJP are from the Sangh. Chief ministers are not chosen without the Sangh’s consent,” the leader said. “Mithun da has directly been sent by Bhagwat ji. We have no doubt about his importance in the election now. He might be given the most significant role. Bhagwat ji does not go and meet random people like this.” 

Reached for comment, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijaywargiya said Chakraborty “is inspired by Modi ji, but there is no way to deny his association with the Sangh”. 

“He is highly motivated by the Sangh and the ideology. We were in touch with him for the past three years, but Sangh has an ultimate influence on him,” he added. 

About his probable role or profile in the party, he said, “He wants to work for the poor. We have not decided on his profile. He will be our star campaigner. But there should not be much speculation about him being the party’s CM face.”

After his meeting with Bhagwat last month, Chakraborty described it as the result of “spiritual connection” and nothing political. He had also visited the RSS headquarters in October 2019. 

Chakraborty’s induction into the BJP comes as the party looks to challenge the Trinamool Congress in the upcoming assembly elections, with its sights set on forming its first-ever government in the state. 

The Trinamool Congress, however, dismissed Chakraborty as a habitual party-changer whose presence in the BJP will have no impact on the election.

‘Bangla chhele’

In Bollywood, Chakraborty starred in such cult films as Disco Dancer and Agneepath. In 2006, he resurrected his acting career with the successful Bengali film MLA Fatakesto, an out-an-out commercial movie. 

Dialogues from the movie — “Maarbo ekhane, lash porbe shoshane (I’ll thrash you here, your body will be found at the crematorium)” — became immensely popular. 

Once known for his proximity to the late CPM leader Subhash Chakraborty, Mithun joined the Trinamool Congress in 2014 and served as a Rajya Sabha MP. He quit the party and Parliament in the backdrop of the multi-crore Saradha Ponzi Scam in December 2016. 

The actor, a brand ambassador for the Saradha group, was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate about money received from the company. He returned the amount to the probe agency and resigned from the Upper House citing ill health. 

Since then, he had been on a political hiatus. 

On Sunday, loud cheers greeted Chakraborty as he took the stage at the Brigade Ground in Kolkata and started his address with peppy dialogues from his Bengali movies. Among other things, he said he “has not come here to leave again”. 

“I will be here with you. I will stay. You can trust me, I have come to work for you,” he said. 

“I had a dream. I wanted to do something for the poor. Standing on this platform today, I can see my dream come true,” he said.

Quoting a film dialogue, he added, “I am not Jaldhora or Belebora (non-venomous breeds of snakes ). I am Jaat Gokhro (cobra).” 

Modi called him “Bangla chhele (Bengal’s son)” who will work for the state. 

“Mithun dada has joined us, he will work for you, he will have an important role to play in the election,” he said. 

In a video message circulated by the BJP, Chakraborty said his decision of joining the Trinamool was “bad”. “I want to work for the poor and I can see my dream coming true. The BJP will surely form a government in Bengal,” he said.    

However, Trinamool Congress MP Sougata Roy said Chakraborty’s entry into the BJP will have no “impact on Bengal’s people” .

“He started as a Naxal, then became CPM. He joined Trinamool and Mamata Banerjee sent him to the Rajya Sabha. But when he was raided by the ED for taking money from Ponzi owners, he surrendered to the BJP and returned the money. He last lost his credibility,” he added.

Modi vs Mamata

Training his guns on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s slogan “Khela Hobe (game on)”, Modi said at the rally, “I know you have played so many matches. You are a good player. You have played matches of corruption, extortion and nepotism. Bengal will end your game this time. Your game is over, Didi.”

“I have been called so many names, including Raavan, Danav, Daitya (monster), and so on. Why are you so angry, Didi?” he said. “I know why you call me names. You are afraid that I work for the poor. You are afraid that they (the downtrodden) are my friends and support me over you. That’s why you seek solace in name-calling me.”

Trinamool, he added, “is now in its end-game”. “Do not be afraid. Vote without fear. Your vote now will determine the course of Bengal for the next 25 years. Bengal should show the way as India celebrates 100 years of Independence. It’s time for asol poriborton (real change),” he said. 

He also took a potshot at Banerjee’s poll campaign, where she has positioned herself as Bengal’s daughter. Modi said she was “India’s daughter” and people in Bengal loved her like their “elder sister” (Mamata is referred to Didi), but she “chose to be the aunt of only one person”. 

This was reference to allegations of nepotism lobbed at Banerjee, who has been accused of projecting nephew Abhishek Banerjee as her heir apparent. “You stood up against nepotism in the Congress and then you yourself fell for that,” Modi said.

Mamata Banerjee, hit back as she held a rally protesting against fuel and cooking gas price rise in Siliguri. Alleging that the “country was being put on sale” — a jibe at the Modi government’s disinvestment drive — the chief minister dared the Prime Minister to a “one-on-one debate” with her.  “Change will not come in Bengal. We will be in power here. But there will soon be a change in Delhi,” she said.