IPFT bandh on December 5 to press for Twipraland

AGARTALA: The Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT), an ally of the BJP-led government in Tripura, and its frontal organizations, have called a dawn-to-dusk bandh in Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (ADC) areas on December 5 (Wednesday) to press for their demand for a separate Twipraland for the indigenous people and withdrawal of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016.
The opposition Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT) has also called a road and rail blockade in Tripura on December 10, seeking withdrawal of the citizensip bill. The party has been campaigning across the hills against the proposed amendment, which they believe, is an attempt to legalize infiltrators in India.

Talking to the media here, IPFT assistant general secretary Mangal Debbarma said their demands also included holding of byelection in village councils under ADC. He alleged that State Election Commission (SEC) has not taken any imitative to conduct by-poll in over 1,500 village committee seats, which fell vacant following the resignation of the elected members after the BJP-IPFT government came to power in March this year.

The IPFT will organize Delhi Abhiyan in the second week of December on the sole demand of Tipraland based on the schedule areas of the state, he added.

The INPT has announced to go for blockade of national highway, interstate roads and railway tracks on December 10 to oppose the bill. The party will stage blockade instead of demonstration to press for its demand, said INPT president Bijoy Kumar Hrangkhawal. He added that the blockade will continue from 6am to 6pm.