Agartala, March 17 (PTI/IANS): With the ruling BJP and its coalition partner Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) in the state failing to forge an alliance for the coming parliamentary elections, the opposition Congress on Sunday offered the tribal party an honourable solution if it wished.
Tripura PCC president Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debburman told reporters that Congress would offer an “honourable solution” to IPFT wishes to talk to it regarding the parliamentary elections.
“If IPFT feels it has trouble with BJP, they are most welcome to talk to me. I will offer them an honourable solution,” Debburman said.
However, he did not elaborate what could be the “honourable” solution.
IPFT had on Saturday announced that talks for seat adjustment with BJP for the two Lok Sabha seats in Tripura had failed and it has decided to field its candidates in them.
IPFT supremo N C Debbarma, who is the revenue minister of the coalition government in the state, would contest from the East Tripura (ST) constituency and the party’s youth leader Suklacharan Noatia would contest from West Tripura seat, the party had said.
The party has 8 MLAs in the 60 member Tripura Assembly, while its coalition partner BJP has 36 legislators.
BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharjee ruled out any impact on the poll prospects of the party in the coming Lok Sabha election due to IPFTs decision to go it alone.
“We are not thinking about IPFT now. BJP will contest in both Lok Sabha seats of Tripura. We are confident of victory,” he said.
Debburman said Congress has kept its doors open for dialogue on poll alliance with all regional parties of the state, including Indigenous Nationalist Party of Twipra (INPT), National Conference of Tripura (NCT) and IPFTTipraha (breakaway faction of IPFT).
“I am talking to everyone. My aim is not to bully regional parties. Regional parties have a role to play but it should not be in direct conflict with the Congress ideology,” he said.
“We have to defeat the BJP and we are doing everything to make sure that it is defeated in Tripura,” he added.
Senior CPI(M) leader and Lok Sabha MP Jitendra Chaudhury said his party would not take support from IPFT, even if it comes out of the alliance with BJP and offers support.
Meanwhile, CPI-M MP Sankar Prasad Datta Sunday alleged that since the announcement of Lok Sabha elections BJP backed “antisocials” are attacking the Left party leaders, activists and supporters.
He told a poll rally at Dukli near here that BJP “goons” had attacked CPI-M leaders, workers and supporters on March 14 including the party’s Rajya Sabha MP Jharna Das Baidya and her husband when they were on their way to attend a meeting in West Tripura district.
Reacting to the allegation, BJP spokesperson Ashok Sinha said, It is the nature of CPI(M) to label false charges against BJP workers”.
Arunachal CM to be BJP nominee from Mukto Assembly seat
Arunachal Pradesh chief minister Pema Khandu will contest the April 11 assembly elections from Mukto, his home constituency in Tawang district, bordering China.
Since 2004 assembly elections, the Mukto seat has a history of MLAs being elected without a contest.
Khandu, heading a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government since December 2016, was elected unopposed from the constituency in 2014 and had no rival in the 2011 by-election as well.
The death of his father and former chief minister Dorjee Khandu in a helicopter crash in April 2011 had necessitated the by-poll.
The senior Khandu too was elected unopposed from the Mukto seat in 1990, 2004 and 2009 on a Congress ticket.
The constituency is dominated by the Monpa community, who are followers of Buddhism.
The BJP on Sunday declared the names of candidates for 54 seats in the 60-member state Assembly.
Among the candidates, few are first timers while the names of several ministers, including Arunachal Pradesh Home Minister Kumar Waii and Tourism Minister Jarkar Gamlin, and that of many sitting MLAs were dropped.
Waii and Gamlin represent Bameng and Alo East seats respectively in the outgoing House.
Sitting MLAs who were denied party tickets this time include Tapuk Taku (Seppa East), Pani Taram (Koloriang), Punji Mara (Taliha), Dikto Yekar (Daporijo), Kardo Nyigyor (Likabali), Lombo Tayeng (Mebo), C T Mein (Chowkham), Wanglin Lowangdong (Borduria-Bogapani) and Thangwang Wangham from Longding-Pumao assembly constituency.
Deputy chief minister Chowna Mein has been fielded from Chowkham constituency instead of Lekang which, he has been representing for the five consecutive terms since 1995, due to the recent state-wide protest over the permanent residence certificate (PRC) issue in the state. The Lekang constituency has over 70% non-tribal voters who are demanding grant of PRCs.
The Congress in Arunachal Pradesh has decided to field former Chief Minister Nabam Tuki against BJP leader and Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju in Arunachal West seat in the Lok Sabha elections.
Tuki’s name features in the list of 27 candidates released by the Congress on Saturday night. Besides, former Arunachal Pradesh Minister James Lowangcha Wanglet has been fielded from Arunachal East constituency.
Rijiju represents the Arunachal West Lok Sabha seat while senior Congress leader Ninong Ering represents the Arunachal East constituency.
Tuki was the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh between 2011-2016, while Wanglet had served the state as Home, Finance and Civil Supplies minister in the past. Wanglet, who hails from the royal family known as the Lowang’s of Namsang-Borduria, is the founding general secretary of Peoples’ Party of Arunachal, a regional political party.
He was elected four times to the Arunachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly. Tuki, a seasoned politician, replaced Jarbom Gamlin as the Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh on November 1, 2011 and continued till January 2016. However, after a political crisis in 2016, the President’s Rule was imposed ending his tenure as the Chief Minister.
