BJP won 2023 Tripura Assembly elections because of vote division: Tipra Motha leader

Agartala, Dec 9 (PTI) Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) chief executive member (CEM) Purna Chandra Jamatia on Tuesday claimed that the BJP has managed to win the 2023 Assembly elections in the state because of vote division.

Jamatia, whose Tipra Motha Party (TMP) rules the tribal council despite its alliance with the BJP, said the party had fielded candidates in all 20 ST-reserved seats in the first phase and later contested 22 non-ST constituencies. This, he said, contributed to splitting votes in mixed-population seats and led to the defeat of the Left-Congress combine.

"The BJP managed to win the 2023 Assembly elections because the party had contested in 42 Assembly seats. It ensured vote division among political parties, which helped it retain power," Jamatia told reporters.

In Tripura, 20 of the 60 Assembly seats are reserved for STs, while tribal voters play a decisive role in at least 22 other constituencies.

Asked about BJP general secretary Bipin Debbarma’s remark that Tipra Motha would "vanish" in the upcoming TTAADC elections early next year, TTAADC member of district council (MDC) Hansa Kumar Tripura said the ruling party had failed to deliver on promises made before the last Assembly polls.

"The results in the TTAADC elections will completely reverse what the BJP is dreaming of. Under Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma’s leadership, Tipra Motha has consolidated its base across the state. Everybody knows the BJP won in 2023 due to vote division in 22 seats," he said.

Later, Minister of State for Industries and Commerce Brishketu Debbarma welcomed 21 BJP leaders into the Tipra Motha fold.

"Twenty-one BJP leaders, including a former mandal president, joined the Tipra Motha today, pledging to work under Debbarma’s leadership. A mega joining programme will soon be organised," he said. PTI PS MNB