Agartala:
The BJP has agreed to move ahead with the implementation of the March 2024 Tripartite Agreement, including steps on indigenous land rights, paving the way for an electoral understanding with the TIPRA Motha Party and IPFT for the upcoming TTAADC Village Committee elections, Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha said in Agartala after returning from Delhi.
Saha had rushed to the national capital, where he held discussions with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and TIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Debbarma. He described the talks as “fruitful and constructive” and said the three NDA partners would contest the September 28 Village Committee elections together.
The development assumes significance since Pradyot Debbarma had repeatedly maintained that implementation of the Tripartite Agreement, particularly the protection of indigenous land rights, was central to any electoral understanding with the BJP.
The March 2, 2024 agreement among the Centre, the Tripura government, TIPRA Motha, and other stakeholders aims to address issues concerning indigenous people, including land and political rights, economic development, identity, culture, and language. It also envisaged a Joint Working Committee to outline measures for time-bound implementation.
The Centre has assured TIPRA Motha that implementation of the agreement will proceed in phases, with measures relating to land rights expected to begin next month. The process will be pursued within the constitutional framework, including the Sixth Schedule.
The electoral understanding brings together the BJP, TIPRA Motha, and IPFT for the first time in the TTAADC Village Committee polls. Elections to 587 Village Committees covering 4,597 seats are scheduled for September 28, with counting on October 5. The polls are being held after a gap of nearly a decade.
The BJP and TIPRA Motha had contested the previous TTAADC elections separately, making their decision to jointly fight the Village Committee polls politically significant.
Saha said implementation of the Tripartite Agreement would be pursued in a time-bound manner while safeguarding the sentiments and interests of all communities.
The implementation of the agreement will now remain a crucial test of the emerging political understanding between the BJP and TIPRA Motha, particularly as the latter has made the protection of indigenous rights a central political commitment.
