Agartala, September 16: Senior Congress leader of Tripura and MLA Sudip Roy Barman has launched a sharp attack on the BJP-TIPRA Motha-IPFT alliance for the upcoming Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) Village Committee elections, calling the arrangement “opportunistic” and questioning whether TIPRA Motha supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma would withdraw support from the government if the Centre fails to implement the Tripartite Agreement within the one-month deadline he has cited.
The BJP, TIPRA Motha and IPFT have announced that they will contest the September 28 Village Committee elections together as NDA partners. The announcement followed discussions in New Delhi involving Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief Minister Manik Saha and Pradyot Kishore Debbarma.
Roy Barman, a former Minister, said the alliance had come together despite the parties having contested the 2026 TTAADC elections separately just four months ago, and alleged that the latest understanding was driven by electoral considerations and promises surrounding implementation of the March 2024 Tripartite Agreement.
“The terminology I should use for this opportunistic alliance… it is nothing but to snatch away the legitimate rights of the electors and the indigenous people,” Roy Barman said.
The March 2, 2024 agreement was signed by the Centre, Tripura government and TIPRA, popularly known as TIPRA Motha, to address issues concerning indigenous people relating to history, land, political rights, economic development, identity, culture and language. The Union Home Ministry has said a Joint Working Group/Committee was constituted in August 2024 to work out mutually agreed points in a time-bound manner.
Roy Barman argued that the Village Committee elections were being held without passage of the Constitution (125th Amendment) Bill, which he said would have provided for a three-tier local governance structure in the tribal areas.
“The losers are the indigenous people, the tribal people and the people residing in the TTAADC area,” he said, alleging that the absence of such constitutional changes would limit their economic, social and political empowerment.
The elections are being held across 587 Village Committees covering 4,597 seats after a prolonged gap.
Roy Barman also questioned the political rationale behind the alliance, pointing to the continuing presence of candidates of the three partners in some constituencies despite their declared seat-sharing arrangement.
He said the large number of uncontested seats did not reflect well on the democratic process and alleged that the arrangement was aimed at projecting electoral strength without facing competition.
A major part of his criticism was directed at the promised implementation of the Tripartite Agreement.
“Within one month, something is going to happen,” he said, referring to the assurance attributed to the recent discussions. “But what if it doesn’t happen?”
Roy Barman challenged Debbarma to publicly clarify whether TIPRA Motha would withdraw support from the government if the promised implementation did not take place within the stated timeframe.
“I would urge Mr Pradyot Kishore Debbarma… to say, if in one month nothing happens, whether he will withdraw support or not,” he said.
Roy Barman further alleged that TIPRA Motha was contesting the Village Committee polls with BJP support and funding, while maintaining that the alliance could face political contradictions later.
He also criticised the BJP’s record of commitments, alleging that the party had a history of failing to fulfil promises. These were his political allegations and were not independently established in the material available.
Predicting changes in the country’s political equations ahead of the 2028 Tripura Assembly election, Roy Barman said Debbarma would have to reconsider his political alignment depending on developments at the national level.
He also alleged that BJP’s approach towards greater empowerment of the TTAADC was influenced by its political concerns, while claiming that Debbarma was aware of the difficulties involved in securing implementation of the accord.
The BJP-TIPRA Motha-IPFT alliance is now facing the September 28 Village Committee elections, with polling scheduled across the TTAADC areas. The final contest has also seen the three alliance partners continue to have candidates in some of the same seats, indicating that the announced coordination has not translated into a completely exclusive seat-sharing arrangement.
