BJP–TMP tie-up limited to Assembly elections, no alliance for TTAADC polls: Tripura CM

Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on January 30 clarified that the BJP’s alliance with the Tipra Motha Party (TMP) was limited to the Assembly elections and does not extend to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls.

Speaking in Agartala, Saha said the BJP and TMP had come together for the 2023 Assembly elections and not for the electoral battle of the tribal council. He noted that the political dynamics within the autonomous district council are different and that the party has not yet taken a final decision on any alliance for the upcoming TTAADC elections.

The TMP, a regional party with a strong base in tribal areas, had contested the 2021 TTAADC elections on its own and went on to form the council by winning 18 of the 28 seats, while the BJP secured nine seats. Saha said the BJP is preparing to contest all 28 seats in the next council elections.

The chief minister’s remarks come amid growing differences between the BJP and its ally TMP, particularly over issues related to delays in the implementation of the Tiprasa Accord. The TMP had joined the BJP-led coalition government in Tripura ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections after signing an agreement with the Centre and the state government in March last year for the development of indigenous people.

The current term of the TTAADC is scheduled to end on April 18, 2026. Saha said development would remain the BJP’s central poll plank in the upcoming elections, both in tribal and non-tribal areas.

Claiming that indigenous people have begun to realise that only a national party can fulfil their aspirations, Saha criticised the performance of regional parties that have ruled the autonomous council in the past. He said years of regional party rule in the TTAADC had led to underdevelopment and that people are now placing their trust in the BJP for the development of the hills.

Earlier in the day, the chief minister attended an organisational meeting convened by BJP state president Rajib Bhattacharjee at the party headquarters in Agartala to discuss issues related to the forthcoming tribal council elections.