Less than a month after it was trounced in the state election by the Left Front, the Tripura Congress has split. The Congress won 10 seats while the Left Front bagged 50 in the 60-member assembly. On Sunday, former MLA and senior Congress leader Subal Bhowmik officially launched the Tripura Progressive Gramin Congress (TPGC).

Announcing his resignation from the Congress, Bhowmik said the party had failed to protect supporters from post-poll violence. “The Congress leaders switched off their phones during the crisis,” he said.

Bhowmik also accused the Left Front of manipulating the EVMs with Chinese gadgets.

Urging supporters to remain united for the forthcoming autonomous district council polls, party leader Pradyot Bikram Kishore Manikya said, “Leaving the party is never a solution to any crisis.”