The Opposition parties in Tripura accused the BJP of “unleashing terror across the State” to prevent them from contesting the upcoming three-tier panchayat polls.
“The ruling BJP has virtually reduced the elections to a farce,” said a statement released by the CPI(M)-led Left Front. Its convener Bijan Dhar said the Left parties together could submit only 600 nominations for a total of 6,646 seats, including zila parishad, panchayat samiti and gram panchayats. The rural elections in Tripura are slated for July 27.
The Congress demanded an all-party meeting to discuss the situation. PCC chief Pradyot Kishore Debbarman said that he did not believe free and peaceful election was possible as the “entire process was being rigged by the BJP in connivance with government machinery”.
Denying the allegations levelled by the CPI(M) and the Congress, the BJP alleged attacks and intimidation by the Opposition parties. State BJP spokesperson Nabendu Bhattacharjee lashed out at Mr. Dhar for claiming that the ruling party supporters had set fire to a mosque during a clash in Dharmanagar subdivision. “We are going to file a defamation suit [against Mr. Dhar] for the false and fabricated charge,” said Mr. Bhattacharjee. Mr. Dhar, meanwhile, retracted the statement claiming that he had reacted on the basis of “wrong information” received from a source.
Monday, the last day of filing nominations for the panchayat elections, saw widespread violence across several subdivisions. Dozens of vehicles and motorbikes were damaged during clashes between workers of rival parties. Additional forces were deployed in Dharmanagar, Sonamura and Sabroom subdivisions to maintain law and order.