AGARTALA, Nov 2: The Tipra Motha Party (TMP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have agreed to contest the upcoming civic elections in Tripura together under the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) banner, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ratan Lal Nath said on November 1.
The understanding followed a meeting at the state guest house between Nath and TMP leaders, including Minister of State for Industries and Commerce Brishaketu Debbarma and senior MLA Ranjit Debbarma.
Describing the discussions as fruitful, Nath said the TMP had expressed its willingness to participate in the civic polls and both parties had decided to contest under the NDA banner. He added that the meeting’s outcome would be placed before the BJP leadership for a final decision on seat-sharing.
The BJP’s core committee is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the proposed arrangement.
TMP MLA Ranjit Debbarma confirmed the alliance and said his party wanted to contest from wards where it had a reasonable chance of winning. He said the TMP expected a “respectable number” of seats and expressed hope that the seat-sharing issue would be settled by Monday.
BJP state president Abhishek Debroy said the party had prepared its candidate list and was waiting for approval from the central leadership.
Polling for 21 civic bodies across Tripura is scheduled for November 27, while November 6 is the deadline for filing nomination papers.
The latest understanding follows the parties’ joint participation in the Village Committee elections under the tribal council after intervention by the BJP’s central leadership. However, the TMP had contested the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) elections independently.
