Tripura LoP accuses CM Saha of spreading lies to mask BJP-TMP rift

Agartala, Jan 7 Leader of the Opposition and CPI (M) Tripura state Secretary Jitendra Chaudhury on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Chief Minister Manik Saha, accusing him of repeatedly spreading “falsehoods and baseless propaganda” against the Left party to divert attention from growing infighting within the BJP-Tipra Motha Party (TMP) ruling alliance.

Chaudhury, also a CPI (M) Politburo member, alleged that the Chief Minister Saha was misusing a constitutional office and behaving like a BJP spokesperson instead of the executive head of the state government.

He accused Saha of blaming the CPI (M) for every adverse development and incident in the state, including violence, lack of coordination and internal discord between the BJP and its junior ally TMP.

The Left leader outrightly rejected the Chief Minister’s allegation that the Left was trying to seize power “through the backdoor,” calling it a desperate attempt to conceal what he termed a “collapse of governance.”

“The Chief Minister is using unparliamentary language and circulating fabricated narratives, which are misleading the people and damaging the dignity of the office,” the LoP said, alleging that Saha was being misinformed by his close coterie.

The CPI (M) leader also alleged that TMP had a tacit understanding with the BJP even before formally joining the ruling alliance in 2024 and claimed that its electoral strategy in the 2023 Assembly polls helped split the Left’s vote and support base, paving the way for the BJP’s return to power.

He said that ever since TMP joined the BJP-led government in March 2024, internal conflicts had surfaced, leading to incidents of violence and public confrontations between ruling allies.

Giving details, Chaudhury strongly refuted Saha’s claim that the CPI (M) had introduced insurgency in Tripura, calling the allegation “historically false and morally offensive,” and asserting that Left leaders were among the main victims of extremist violence.

“A prominent minister, many CPI (M) leaders, workers and supporters were killed by the extremists earlier in Tripura,” he pointed out.

Accusing the Chief Minister of dragging the CPI (M) into the BJP-TMP power struggle, Chaudhury alleged widespread corruption within the ruling alliance and warned that continued misuse of the Chief Minister’s office for partisan attacks would erode public trust in democratic institutions.

He urged Saha to stop spreading misinformation and reminded him that, as Chief Minister, he represents the entire state and not a political party alone.

Meanwhile, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Tuesday said that the BJP is working to establish healthy and development-oriented politics in the state and cannot be suppressed through violence or tension.

Addressing a public meeting organised by the party unit at Chawmanu in Dhalai district, the Chief Minister claimed that despite the state government allocating 39.06 per cent of the state budget to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) in the 2024-25 financial year, some parties continue to claim that funds are not being released.

“The BJP is strong not only in the country but across the world. We are sometimes threatened that the national party or the Chief Minister will not be allowed to enter the TTAADC areas. The more we are told not to enter, the more we will go inside. We will reach every household in the tribal areas,” he asserted with an oblique reference to BJP ally TMP.

Since 2021, the TMP led by former royal scion Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma has been governing the politically significant 30-member TTAADC, which covers nearly two-thirds of Tripura’s 10,491 sq km geographical area and is home to over 12.16 lakh people, about 84 per cent of whom belong to indigenous communities.

Ahead of the TTAADC polls, all major political parties, including the ruling BJP, its allies TMP and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), and opposition CPI (M) and Congress, have intensified efforts to consolidate their support among tribals, who constitute nearly one-third of Tripura’s total population of around 4.2 million.

--IANS

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