Tripura: TIPRA Motha wins over 2000 seats in TTAADC village council polls

The TIPRA Motha party, an alliance partner of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tripura won 2,670 seats leaving 470 to BJP in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) village council polls, results of which were declared on Monday.

BJP’s another ally IPFT won 16 seats while 83 seats were won by independent candidates. Oppositions CPIM and Congress won 38 and 10 seats as they contested independent.

The counting of the votes began at 8am. Tensions escalated at some counting centres with protests and road blockades in Sepahijala and Dhalai districts.

Tension also prevailed at Tulasikhar block in Khowai district where security forces allegedly resorted to lathi charge following a confrontation outside a counting centre.

TIPRA Motha party chief Pradyot Bikram Kishore Manikya Debbarma wrote on his Facebook page, “Today’s result will restore the power of the grassroots back to the people. The long struggle in the Supreme Court which I personally fought to ensure that our constitutional rights is restored. Which ever party wins today the most important thing is that the people have won. This is the power of Tiprasa”.

Though 4,597 seats were supposed to go for polls under 587 village committees, voting took place in 2,950 seats as 1,644 seats were elected unopposed including 1,561 from TIPRA Motha party, 81 from BJP, one each from CPIM and an independent.

The Supreme Court, earlier, directed the state Election Commission to hold the village council polls by September first week following a petition filed by TIPRA Motha party supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma.

The five-year term of the elected village committees ended in 2021 but the election could not be conducted due to Covid-19 pandemic.

The 28-seated TTAADC poll held this April where the TIPRA Motha party emerged victorious securing 24 seats, reducing its estranged ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by half of its previous tally - winning only 4 seats this time as against 8 in the last tribal council elections.