38 TMC MLAs contacted BJP: Mithun Chakraborty claims

Kolkata: Bollywood actor-turned-politician cum BJP leader Mithun Chakraborty claimed on Wednesday that 38 Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislators in West Bengal have started contacting BJP leadership again, IANS reported.

"As many as 38 MLAs of Trinamool Congress have started contacting the BJP leadership in the state again. Out of that 38 MLAs, 21 are directly in touch with me," Chakraborty told reporters in Kolkata.

But he had declined to reveal the names of the said MLAs despite repeated requests. However, he admitted that there are possibilities that some of the BJPs elected candidates will shift to TMC.

He said, "We had only three representatives in the West Bengal Assembly after the 2016 elections. In the 2021 Assembly elections, we increased the tally to 77, and now we are 70. My appeal to those who want to join Trinamool Congress is to do that right now. They are welcome to do that. Once they do that, we will have a clear idea on where we stand and accordingly, we can set up our new team,"

TMC Rajya Sabha MP Santanu Sen said that Chakraborty must be suffering from some sort of mental illusion which prompted him to make such absurd claims. "Rather, if Trinamool Congress opens its doors, then BJP will be totally non-existent in West Bengal," he added.

On state Commerce and Industries Minister Partha Chatterjee being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the multi-crore West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) recruitment scam, Chakraborty said that those who are not guilty need not fear as they will be cleared at the end of the investigation. "But if anyone is guilty, he will have to face the consequences," he said.