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Agartala, October 29 (IANS) Amid growing tensions and differences between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its alliance partner Tipra Motha Party (TMP), an important closed-door meeting was held at the party’s state headquarters here on Wednesday in the presence of central observers.
Party sources said that BJP’s North-East coordinator and national spokesperson Sambit Patra, party’s central observer and former Lok Sabha member Rajdeep Roy, including senior party leaders, ministers, MLAs and officials attended the meeting.
Patra, who is also the Lok Sabha member from Puri, along with Roy visited Gomati district on Tuesday soon after reaching Agartala and offered prayers at the 524-year-old Tripura Sundari temple, one of the 51 Shaktipeeths revered by Hindus.
Patra held several meetings with Chief Minister Manik Saha, state president Rajib Bhattacharya and select leaders, ministers and MLAs on Tuesday night and Wednesday.
After the meeting, CM Saha wrote on his official
After Wednesday’s meeting, state tourism and transport minister and BJP leader Sushant Choudhary wrote in a Facebook post: “Today at the state party headquarters, BJP national spokesperson and MP Dr Sambit Patra, state in-charge Dr Rajdeep Roy, party president Rajeev Bhattacharjee, along with my respected colleagues from the state council of ministers, MLAs and senior party functionaries, attended an organizational meeting.”
Chaudhary said that various upcoming organizational programs and activities were discussed in detail in the meeting. Some recent developments have put the ruling BJP in an awkward position and have shaken the politics of the state.
On October 19, the BJP served a show cause notice to its sitting MLA Tafazzal Hussain for making adverse remarks against former Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb and former Union Minister Pratima Bhowmik.
It has been said in the notice that if the MLA’s reply is not satisfactory then disciplinary action will be taken. Speaking during a football match at Boxanagar in Sipahijala district on October 18, Hussain had accused both Deb and Bhowmik of not providing funds for the construction of the gallery at the playground.
Meanwhile, Scheduled Castes and Animal Resources Development Minister Sudhangshu Das’s comments sparked a political storm with opposition parties including CPI-M and Congress making it a major issue.
In an interview, the minister reportedly admitted that some leaders collect money from contractors for their social work expenses. The video clip of the minister’s interview went viral, sparking outrage among people. Das later threatened to file separate cases in court against Jitendra Chaudhary, a social media content creator and opposition leader, for criticizing his comments, saying he was “embarrassed beyond words”.
In another development, senior BJP leader and former Union minister Pratima Bhowmik had a heated argument with senior police officials near Nailhabari in Dhalai district last week when her vehicle was stopped at the barricade put up by the police.
The confrontation exposed internal rifts within the ruling BJP and raised questions over law enforcement actions following the recent violence in Santirbazar in the same district.
Bhowmik took a dig at the law and order situation in the state and the role of the police in dealing with the violent activities of the tribal-based Tipra Motha Party (TMP), which is also an ally of the BJP. The ‘sweet-and-sour relationship’ between the ruling BJP and its ally TMP has continued in recent months.
TMP workers injured more than 20 BJP members and workers in series of attacks in different districts. TMP affiliated Tiprasa Civil Society (TCS), led by TMP MLA Ranjit Debbarma, observed a 24-hour statewide bandh on October 23 in support of their eight-point demands, including deportation of illegal immigrants.
During the bandh, a section of TMP workers attacked several people and officials at Santhirbazar in Dhalai district, leaving more than 12 seriously injured.
The injured included Salema block development officer (BDO) Abhijeet Majumdar, Kamalpur sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) Samudra Debbarma, engineer Animesh Saha and businessman Subrata Paul, all of whom were admitted to hospital with serious injuries.
With the politically crucial Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections due early next year, both the BJP and TMP are working separately to increase their influence among the tribal communities.
–IANS
SC/And