Tripura polls: TIPRA Motha and CPM may come together, claims Jitendra Chaudhury

Though no reaction from TIPRA Motha was available, the party didn’t field any candidate in Sabroom constituency from where Chaudhury is going to contest

With two weeks left for Tripura to go for assembly elections, the CPM on Tuesday said talks with TIPRA Motha are expected to arrive at some sort of understanding by Thursday.

Jitendra Chaudhury is the central committee member of CPI(M) and secretary of Tripura state. (Facebook | Jitendra Chaudhury)

Incidentally, Thursday is the last date of withdrawal of nominations.

“TIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Debbarma ji asked for some time and will get back to me by this evening and tell where he has strong candidates and seek our support. He also asked to prepare a list where TIPRA Motha will have to withdraw their candidates. After that, we shall discuss to reach an understanding by February 2,” said CPM MP Jitendra Chaudhury during his poll campaign at Sabroom in South district.

Though no reaction from TIPRA Motha was available, the party didn’t field any candidate in Sabroom constituency from where Chaudhury is going to contest.

The TIPRA Motha fielded 42 candidates including 20 Scheduled Tribe reserved and other non-tribal areas.

The Left Front fielded candidates in 47 seats including 43 for CPM, one each for Communist Party of India (CPI), Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), Forward Bloc and an independent candidate.

The remaining 13 seats were shared to the Congress but the party fielded candidates in 17 seats.

Meanwhile, the CPM raised objection against candidature of CPM MLA Mabeshwar Ali who switched over to the saffron party citing reasons that he did neither resigned from the party nor they expelled him.

In a letter to poll officer of Kailasahar constituency, Chaudhury stated that Mabeshwar was elected as MLA of Kailasahar on CPM ticket in 2018. Without resigning from the assembly, he filed his nomination as BJP candidate.

“As Md. Mabashar Ali neither resigned from the house of Assembly, nor from the CPI(M), in no circumstances, he may be treated as a candidate sponsored by BJP. Hence, he may be disqualified for being a BJP candidate for want of statutory legal requirement,” reads the letter.

Earlier, the CPM appealed to all the non-BJP parties including TIPRA Motha to jointly contest and defeat the ruling dispensation.

The Congress responded to the appeal while TIPRA Motha declared to contest the polls alone after TIPRA Motha chief Debbarma’s talks with the union home minister Amit Shah over Constitutional solution to their Greater Tipraland demand turned futile as he didn’t get any written assurance from them.