Two-time Rajya Sabha member and former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Chandan Mitra formally joined the Trinamool Congress led by Mamata Banerjee last week.
Known to be close to LK Advani, Mitra's Rajya Sabha membership was not renewed under Amit Shah-led BJP. But the journalist and former lawmaker said he quit the party after a long association because he wanted to do “something constructive” for his home state of West Bengal.
Mitra told BloombergQuint that it's the popularity of the Trinamool Congress that drew him to the party.
The most appropriate vehicle to do something for Bengal is the Trinamool Congress because of the enormous faith people have in the leadership of Mamata Banerjee.Chandan Mitra, Member, Trinamool Congress
Mitra has joined the Trinamool Congress at a time when Banerjee is trying form an anti-BJP alliance before the next general election in May 2019. While Congress' Rahul Gandhi, chief of the the largest opposition party, has staked his claim to be a prime ministerial candidate, several other regional leaders are also in the fray.
“It will be premature to comment whether Rahul Gandhi can be the leader or not,” said Mitra. “There are obviously other claimants.”
Banerjee, the West Bengal chief minister, is believed to be one of them. She would visit New Delhi next week to “personally invite opposition leaders to the federal front”, newswire PTI reported.
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