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Agartala, Nov 23 (IANS) Main opposition CPI-M has condemned the “baseless, irrelevant and anti-communist remarks” made by Chief Minister Manik Saha against the Left party.
The CPI-M on Saturday said Chief Minister Saha made baseless allegations against the Left during his visit to the violence-hit Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) headquarters in Khumulwang, where clashes are continuing between workers of the BJP and its ally Tipra Motha Party (TMP).
In a statement, the Left party alleged that instead of condemning the violence in Khumulwang, the Chief Minister “engaged in false propaganda targeting the Communists and CPI-M in an attempt to shield the misdeeds of BJP and TMP workers”.
Chief Minister Saha’s comments, which also included references to the CPI-M’s governance culture in Kerala, West Bengal and Tripura, exposed “his hatred towards communists”, the Left party said in a statement.
It claimed that the Chief Minister had “resorted to blatant lies to divert public attention from the atrocities committed by the ruling coalition”.
The Left party also alleged that CM Saha, being both the Chief Minister and Home Minister, had failed to maintain law and order and prevent the “bloody clash” between BJP and TMP workers.
“They have resorted to ridiculous and malicious lies to conceal this failure,” the statement said.
According to the CPI-M, clashes between workers and supporters of the two ruling coalition partners have escalated in the past few days in Jiraniya, Khumulwang, Jampuijala and Takrajala over the distribution of corruption money.
The CPI-M claimed that party offices of both the BJP and TMP were set on fire, houses were vandalized, people were beaten up, and properties were looted and set on fire, while two police stations in the area “remained completely defunct”, resulting in widespread fear and insecurity among residents of the state.
The CPI-M also said that a minister in the BJP government has also publicly blamed the Chief Minister for the situation, and “both the state administration and the TTAADC administration are nowhere to be seen”.
The main opposition party demanded that the Chief Minister take responsibility for the “law and order situation caused by the clash between BJP and TMP workers” and condemn the violence.
It urged them to restore peace and normalcy instead of “encouraging miscreants with false and provocative comments targeting CPI-M”.
The CPI-M, which was in power in Tripura for 35 years in two phases (1978–1988 and 1993 to 2018), urged the people of Tripura to “raise their voice against the Chief Minister’s malicious comments and the government’s failure to ensure security”.
Meanwhile, Tripura Chief Minister Saha on Friday claimed that many people in the state still maintained a “communist mindset”, alleging that acts of violence including arson and terrorism were imported from the CPI-M.
“On Thursday (November 20), a woman was brutally tortured and her household items were looted. Jewelery and money were snatched. Everything including the refrigerator was destroyed,” he had told the media after visiting the TTAADC headquarters in Khumulwang.
CM Saha had said, “Even before this incident, a party office was vandalized and set on fire. This cannot be accepted under any circumstances. Therefore, whatever action needs to be taken will be taken in the coming days.”
The chief minister also said recent dialogues had helped narrow down differences between the BJP and TMP leadership, but he stressed that incidents of violence were “undesirable and unacceptable”.
CM Saha held two back-to-back closed-door meetings with TMP supremo Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma in recent weeks to discuss various matters, including the series of tussles and clashes between the BJP and the tribal-based party (TMP).
During the visit, the Chief Minister was also accompanied by BJP State General Secretary Bipin Debbarma, local Mandal President and other leaders.
In view of the growing conflict within Tripura’s ruling coalition, TMP leader and Forest Minister Animesh Debbarma on Friday demanded that the Home portfolio, currently held by the Chief Minister, be handed over to his party.
Debbarma alleged that the Home Department under Chief Minister Saha has failed, resulting in uncontrolled political violence across the state.
The minister’s statement comes amid an increase in clashes over the past few days in which several offices of both the BJP and TMP were attacked, vandalized or burnt and supporters of both sides injured in separate incidents.
Speaking after inspecting two TMP offices destroyed by fire in Khumulwang, Debbarma blamed the police for allowing the violence to escalate.
He claimed that the identities of the miscreants involved in the attacks were known and officially presented, yet no arrests or action have been taken.
“The police in Tripura have become completely inactive. Miscreants are being protected while our party is being blamed,” the TMP leader alleged.
The minister asserted that law and order would “completely change” if the Home Department portfolio was given to TMP.
Debbarma accused the current system of politically biased policing and warned that the situation would not be tolerated further.
He also hinted at possible political consequences, announcing that the Tipra Motha Party would soon take a “final stand” regarding its alliance with the BJP after consulting party supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma.
–IANS
SC/KHz