Agartala: Five newly-elected women members were sworn-in in the new Tripura assembly on International Women’s Day Friday.
Protem speaker Niranjan Debbarma administered the oath to them.
Five women (eight percent), the highest number in Tripura’s electoral history, were elected to the 11th assembly.
All five are from the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M). In all, 15 women contested the polls Feb 14.
In the last assembly elections in 2008, three women members (five percent) were elected to the house.
The 60-member house will see 10 new faces, of which nine are from the Left Front.
Debbarma also administered oath to all the new members of the Left Front, including Chief Minister Manik Sarkar and his council of ministers as members of the 11th Tripura assembly.
The opposition Congress-Indigenous Nationalist Party of Tripura (INPT)-National Conference of Tripura (NCT) alliance boycotted the oath-taking ceremony, alleging “widespread post-poll violence in various parts of the state”.
According to Congress sources, the opposition members would be sworn in later.
Ruling Left Front constituents CPI-M won 49 seats while Communist Party of India won one.
The main opposition Congress secured 10 seats, while its poll partners INPT and NCT drew a blank each.
The first session of the Tripura assembly has been summoned by the governor March 15, when the speaker and deputy speaker would be elected.
The ruling CPI-M has announced that Ramendra Chandra Debnath, speaker of the Tripura assembly since 2003, and former minister Pabitra Kar would be the Left Front candidates for the posts of speaker and deputy speaker, respectively.
The first session of the 11th assembly would be held on March 15. (IANS)
