Agartala, September 10:
The Tripura State Election Commission on Thursday said 10,889 nomination papers out of 10,961 filed for the 2026 general election to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District (TTAAD) Village Committees were found valid after scrutiny, while 72 papers pertaining to 49 candidates were rejected.
State Election Commissioner Dr P K Chakraborty speaking to reporters said the scrutiny of nominations was completed by the Returning Officers on September 9, and the final picture of the contest would emerge only after the withdrawal process ends at 3 pm on September 11.
A total of 10,961 nomination papers were filed by 10,938 candidates. The distinction between the number of papers and candidates is because a candidate can submit more than one nomination paper.
According to the SEC, TIPRA Motha Party submitted the highest number of nomination papers at 4,391, followed by CPI(M) with 2,487, BJP 1,974, IPFT 486, Congress 466, CPI four and others 1,153.
After scrutiny, 4,361 TIPRA Motha, 2,456 CPI(M), 1,971 BJP, 483 IPFT, 465 Congress, four CPI and 1,149 nominations under the ‘Others’ category were accepted.
The rejected papers included 31 of CPI(M), 30 of TIPRA Motha, three each of BJP and IPFT, one of Congress and four under ‘Others’. No CPI nomination paper was rejected.
Chakraborty said the 72 rejected papers belonged to 49 candidates and cautioned that rejection of an individual nomination paper does not necessarily mean rejection of a candidate’s candidature if another valid nomination paper filed by the same candidate remains.
The next stage is withdrawal of candidature. Candidates can withdraw their nominations by submitting written notice to the Returning Officer, personally or through an authorised election agent, until 3 pm on September 11. The Returning Officers will subsequently prepare the final list of contesting candidates in Form-7 under Rule 28.
The SEC said 1,179 candidates had emerged as single nominees as of September 9, including 1,148 from TIPRA Motha and 31 from the BJP across 34 blocks. The final position, including the number of candidates actually contesting and those elected unopposed, will be known only after withdrawal.
On reports of violence during the nomination process, Chakraborty said there had been no major incident so far. He said reports received by the commission were largely oral accounts of minor altercations or verbal exchanges, which were dealt with through intervention by police, district election officials and senior officers.
Referring specifically to the incident at Hezamara where IPFT general secretary Swapan Debbarma was allegedly injured by Motha goons, he said the preliminary report received from the Returning Officer indicated that the incident occurred outside the Returning Officer’s premises and was not related to submission of nomination papers.
The SEC also disclosed the security arrangement for the election, saying 74 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF), including 24 companies already available in the state, would be utilised for law-and-order duties and the conduct of polling.
Chakraborty said the state police had informed the commission that the election could be conducted with the forces available in Tripura. However, following discussions with political parties, police officials and senior government officers, including the Home Secretary, the commission felt additional CAPF deployment was necessary.
He said the deployment was also linked to directions of the Supreme Court and the commitment made by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs regarding CAPF availability.
The Village Committee election covers 4,597 seats in 587 Village Committees. The polling schedule provides for voting on September 28, while counting is scheduled for October 5.
