I wouldn't have done a Baru: Chandan Mitra

Holding roadshows, going door to door, addressing people at street corners, market places, on the banks of the ganges, it has been a hectic routine for Mitra, who feels "like a celebrity".

He says lack of development is a major issue.

"The constituency also includes Singur, where the erstwhile Left Front government's bid to acquire land for a Tata Nano plant had triggered a peasant unrest, which the Trinamool encashed to come to power. However, the car factory still stands, albeit like a ghost house.

"If I get a chance, I will set up an IT park there," says Mitra. He also promises to construct good hospitals besides agro-based industries, as agriculture is "stagnating".

What would be his newspaper's future if he got an important assignment in the new government?

"I would see to it that the paper survives. So, if I ever take any responsibility, I want to do for the paper whatever is permitted by rules and constitutional provisions of my new assignment," Mitra said.