Till now, the relationship between the BJP and the TIPRA Motha was behind the curtains. This week, putting an end to all the speculations, the TIPRA Motha, leaving the post of the main Opposition party in the state assembly, joined the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government of Tripura. It has two ministers in Chief Minister Manik Saha’s council of ministers. Animesh Debbarma, who resigned from his post as the Leader of the Opposition, took oath as a cabinet minister, while Brishaketu Debbarma took the oath as a minister of state.
An instance of the main Opposition party joining the government itself is an unusual incident in the state's political history. Nevertheless, in the era of the “double-engine” government, this too happened in the state. Given the developments that happened in the last year, Motha joining the NDA was something not completely out of the box. It was an open secret that in the state assembly polls held last year, the saffron party, battling anti-incumbency and factionalism, was able to return to power with the hidden blessings of Pradyot Debbarma, the founder of TIPRA Motha. Despite not having a chance, the party fielded candidates in the 22 non-Scheduled Tribes seats — of which only in two seats did it emerge as the runner-up. In 13 other non-ST seats, Motha divided the anti-BJP votes and benefited the saffron party. In fact, out of the 14 seats won by the Left-Congress alliance, 11 came from where Motha had not put up candidates.
Later, after becoming the main Opposition party, Motha, barring some occasional criticisms, mostly followed a soft strategy towards the ruling party. It was not that there were no issues. The Village Committee elections under the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council are yet to take place. The elections were supposed to take place by March 2021, but they didn’t happen due to Covid — although in the later period, the state witnessed many elections, including the general elections of the TTAADC, urban local body polls, by-elections to assembly constituencies, and the state assembly elections. Motha did try to pressure the government on this issue, but later it put the issue on the back burner. Despite alleging that the state BJP government has reduced funds to the TTAADC, Motha didn’t launch strong protests on the ground. Only on the issue of the Roman script for the students studying the Kokborok language did the party play its role as the Opposition party.
But what happens to the issue of Greater Tipraland now?
The joining of TIPRA Motha to the NDA came days after the party signed a tripartite agreement with the Centre and the state government. The agreement agreed to resolve all the issues of the indigenous people related to history, land rights, political rights, economic development, identity, culture, language, etc. Interestingly, the agreement nowhere mentions the demand for Greater Tipraland, the demand on which Motha rose to state politics through the TTAADC polls of 2021.
Although the party’s founder, Pradyot Debbarma, maintains that it hasn’t abandoned the issue and even compared it with the Ayodhya Ram Temple movement, this is a sign that the party has put the issue on the back burner. After all, the Ram Temple issue is different from the issue of Greater Tipraland. Actually, Pradyot as well as the party also knows that the issue isn’t a feasible one given the demography of the state. It is for this reason this demand is opposed by BJP, CPM, and Congress. In fact, any division of the northeastern state on ethnic lines is bound to disturb the existing communal harmony between the Bengalis and the tribals.
This Wednesday, the central committee meeting of Gana Mukti Parishad, the tribal wing of the CPI(M), took place in Agartala. The next day, addressing the media, the president of GMP, former minister Naresh Jamatia, attacked the TIPRA Motha for aligning with the BJP. He alleged that whatever funds allocated to TTAADC by the state government weren’t even utilized properly by the Motha-led ADC administration. Along with him, the general secretary of GMP, Radhacharan Debbarma, alleged that the situation in the hills has worsened as a result of the crisis of food and unemployment and also the poor condition of roads.
The joining of TIPRA Motha to the NDA has resulted in the creation of a political vacuum in the hills. Given that a section of supporters of Motha is anti-BJP, it is likely that they are not going to accept this decision and may well look for an alternative.
According to reports, GMP has decided to launch campaigns across the hills. It organised some programmes recently. Lok Sabha polls are around the corner, and with Motha leaving the Opposition camp, the current situation provides a golden opportunity for the GMP to rebuild its base in the hills. The Left organization was once the strongest force in the hills for many decades, but it has weakened considerably, though it has still been able to retain a section of its support.
The political temperature has escalated in the Himalayan state of Sikkim after senior Sikkim Democratic Front leader and former speaker of the state assembly KN Rai was physically assaulted last week. The senior leader is still critical and is undergoing treatment. This anti-democratic incident has shocked the people of the state.
After the incident, the main Opposition, SDF, launched a sharp attack against the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha. Former Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling accused the SKM and even the chief minister Prem Singh Golay of being behind this physical assault. The SDF and the Citizen Action Party have demanded President’s Rule in the state. Not only the Opposition parties but even SKM’s ally, BJP, too, demanded the same.
Political violence has been a concern in the northeastern Himalayan state. This is not the first time that the SDF leaders and workers have been attacked. Opposition parties SDF and CAP, and even ally BJP, expressed their concerns about the increasing political violence in the past — and this column, too, highlighted this crucial issue more than once.
The state police have stated that six persons have been arrested in connection with this attack, and even the chief minister has condemned the attack. These are positive developments but aren’t enough. Given that the assembly elections in the state are less than two months away, SKM, being the ruling party, has to walk the extra mile to ensure that political violence — a threat to the state's democracy — doesn’t take place as in most cases of violence the allegations are mostly against it.
The author is a political commentator.
[Disclaimer: The opinions, beliefs, and views expressed by the various authors and forum participants on this website are personal and do not reflect the opinions, beliefs, and views of ABP News Network Pvt Ltd.]
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