BJP and TIPRA Motha Engage in Seat-Sharing Talks for Upcoming Village Committee Elections in Tripura
Negotiations for Seat-Sharing Intensify
File image of women voters in Tripura (Photo: PTI)
Agartala, Sept 11: On Thursday, the BJP and TIPRA Motha commenced the second phase of their discussions regarding seat-sharing in anticipation of the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) Village Committee elections. The aim is to address discrepancies concerning candidate placements and withdrawals.
The discussions took place at the State Guest House, led by Ratan Lal Nath, a senior BJP figure and Minister of Parliamentary Affairs.
This new round of talks follows an unsuccessful prior meeting where both parties could not finalize an agreement. The focus is reportedly on candidate adjustments and the withdrawal of nominations, especially from TIPRA Motha, which has nominated the highest number of candidates.
Attending the meeting from the BJP were leaders Sushanta Chowdhury, Bipin Debbarma, and MLA Pramod Reang.
TIPRA Motha's delegation included Minister of State Brisaketu Debbarma and MLAs Ranjit Debbarma, Biswajit Kaloi, and Philip Reang, along with TTAADC Chief Executive Member Runiel Debbarma.
Notably, the Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), another ally in the NDA, was absent from the discussions. This follows an incident where the party's general secretary, Swapan Debbarma, was reportedly attacked by individuals associated with TIPRA Motha two days prior.
In light of this event, the IPFT has expressed concerns regarding the state's law and order situation.
As per the Tripura State Election Commission (SEC), a total of 10,958 nomination papers were submitted by 10,936 candidates for 4,597 Village Committees, with 10,889 of these being validated.
TIPRA Motha secured 4,361 valid nominations, followed by CPI(M) with 2,456, and BJP with 1,971. The Congress party had 465 valid nominations, while the IPFT had 483, and CPI had four. Additionally, 1,149 nominations were submitted by Independents and other minor parties.
The deadline for withdrawing candidacies is September 11, after which the final contest details will be clarified.
The elections for the Village Committees are scheduled for September 28 across 587 committees under the TTAADC.
Nominations were accepted starting September 1, with the final submission date being September 8. The scrutiny of these nominations took place on September 9, as stated by SEC Secretary Anurag Sen.
For the elections, 74 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) have been allocated, with 24 already present in Tripura and the remaining expected to arrive soon.