CORRESPONDENT
AGARTALA: The TIPRA Motha party registered a landslide victory in the Village Committee elections in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council by winning 3,428 seats out of a total of 4,594, pushing its alliance partner, the BJP, to a distant second position with 859 seats. The main opposition CPI(M) won only 87 seats. Most of the remaining 220 seats went to independents, the majority of whom were actually dissident members of TIPRA Motha who contested the election after rejecting the alliance with the BJP.
The declared results clearly indicate the royalist political party TIPRA Motha's total control over the TTAADC areas, which comprise two-thirds of the state's total geographical area. The result will also have a major impact on the forthcoming Assembly election, to be held in 2028, as 20 tribal-reserved seats mostly comprise these areas. The BJP currently has seven tribal-reserved seats in its kitty and, observers feel, the party will find it difficult to retain these seats in 2028.
BJP leaders are trying to console themselves by saying that the NDA alliance won over 90 per cent of the seats, while hiding the fact that the party in power, both at the Centre and in the state, has virtually been reduced to non-existence in the ADC areas. However, Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha said the result would have a positive impact on the state.
Also Read: Arunacahal: 67 Injured in Siang Clashes as SIFF Protests Multipurpose Project