New Delhi: Senior journalist and two-time Rajya Sabha MP Chandan Mitra has quit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and is all set to join the Trinamool Congress (TMC).
Mitra had submitted his resignation to BJP president Amit Shah on Tuesday and would be joining the TMC on 21st July at the Shahid Divas celebrations.
As per the news sources, Shahid Divas is celebrated by the TMC on 21st July marking the Martyr’s Day commemorating the 13 Youth Congress workers who were killed in police firing of 1993 during the Left Front regime. West Bengal Chief Minister and party supremo, Mamata Banerjee would be leading the event where Mitra will formally join the party.
Though Mirtra and the TMC have not spoken on this, Banerjee’s party has promised that a large number of new faces will join the party on Saturday, according to the media reports.
According to reports, Mitra was upset because of being sidelined under the Modi-Shah leadership. He is a close aide of veteran BJP leader LK Advani.
Mitra had been critical about the BJP when the party was defeated in the Kairana bypoll in May, he was quoted as saying that the party did not pay adequate attention to the issue of sugarcane farmers.
Mitra was a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha from August 2003 to 2009. In June 2010, he got elected to the upper house from Madhya Pradesh by the BJP. His term ended in 2016. He had contested for the 2016 West Bengal assembly election from the Hooghly seat on a BJP ticket and lost.
