Tipra Motha discusses SIR in electoral rolls, tripartite accord implementation with JP Nadda

A delegation of Tipra Motha, a junior ally of the ruling BJP, on Thursday held a meeting with BJP President and Union Health Minister J.P. Nadda in the national capital and discussed the pressing need to implement the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Tripura, party sources said.

A Tipra-Motha spokesman in Agartala said that nine-member delegation of the Motha, led by party supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma, also discussed about the implementation of the tripartite accord, signed on March 2 last year, with J.P. Nadda, who is also the Union Health and Family Welfare Minister.

The spokesman said that concerns regarding national security due to the prevailing situation in Bangladesh and the atrocities against minorities there were also discussed with the Union Minister.

TMP leaders and two state's ministers -- Animesh Debbarma and Brishaketu Debbarma, Lok Sabha Member from Tripura East parliamentary constituency Kriti Devi Debbarman were also present in the meeting.

“The Union government earlier assured the implementations of the tripartite accord before the Lok Sabha elections last year in the interest of the indigenous people of Tripura,” the Motha spokesman said.

Meanwhile, party supremo Pradyot Kishore Debbarma on Wednesday said that the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Wednesday told a delegation of the Motha that the SIR of the electoral rolls would be conducted across the country including Tripura.

A nine-member delegation of the Motha, led by Debbarma, met the full ECI led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and demanded the SIR in Tripura similar to the procedure being adopted in Bihar.

After meeting the ECI, Debbarma, had told the media in New Delhi that one of the key agendas discussed was the immediate implementation of the SIR in Tripura, and the Commission has assured that the SIR would be conducted all across the country, including in Tripura.

“Illegal migration is affecting our state and northeast, and today, if we don’t identify illegal voters, there will be no tomorrow for our next generation. The good news is that the ECI has assured the delegation (Tipra-Motha) that SIR will be conducted across the country, including Tripura,” Motha chief said.

Tipra-Motha, in a letter to the ECI, demanded to conduct the SIR of the electoral roll in Tripura, accompanied by a comprehensive door-to-door verification exercise, similar to the model recently adopted in the state of Bihar.

After a year-long hectic parleys and after signing a tripartite agreement with the Centre and the Tripura government on March 2 last year, the then opposition Motha with 13 MLAs joined the BJP-led coalition government in the state on March 7 last year, adding a new twist to Tripura's politics.

On the same day, two Motha MLAs -- Animesh Debbarma and Brishaketu Debbarma -- were inducted into the ministry headed by Chief Minister Manik Saha. The Motha’s demands include greater autonomy for the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) and the development of the tribals’ socio-economic conditions.