Tripura election: Crack shows up in IPFT over alliance with BJP
The Hindu
One faction has said that it will partner with the ruling party for the upcoming polls; TIPRA chief says several IPFT supporters want to join him
A crack has surfaced in the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura, the junior partner of the ruling BJP in the northeastern State, with one faction announcing a decision to ally with the BJP for the upcoming Assembly election.
However, IPFT president and State Minister Prem Kumar Reang and some senior leaders of the party who had earlier sought a grouping with TIPRA (Tipraha Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance) remained incommunicado to both the BJP and TIPRA.
“Looks like Operation Lotus is on,” TIPRA chief Pradyot Debbarma commented on Twitter. He said that IPFT leaders were “surprisingly not picking their calls since 11 a.m.” Later in the day, he tweeted, “Many calls coming from everywhere! Reports of thousands of IPFT supporters joining us.”
Mr. Debbarma and top leaders of the regional party were busy in meetings at the royal palace here to finalise the list of TIPRA candidates. The list will be announced any time, an aide of Mr. Debbarma said.
For the first time in the election history of Tripura, all major political parties, including the CPI(M), the BJP and the Congress — are facing the heat over nominations. The Left front’s alliance partner Congress is facing protests after it announced a list of 17 candidates and is likely to announce another a set of candidates soon.
The CPI(M) has replaced the party’s two veterans Aghore Debbarma and Manik Dey — both former Ministers — citing “health issues” with new faces. Earlier, the party had lost its MLA Moboshar Ali to the BJP. Mr. Ali will now be contesting on the lotus symbol from his Kailashahar constituency.
The BJP’s selection of candidates in some constituencies — Kadamtala-Kurti, Bagbassa and Chandipur — of north Tripura was met with protests. Supporters of local candidates vandalised party offices and tore up flags and festoons.
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