Agartala: When ruling BJP and it’s tribal ally IPFT have been in loggerhead over taking the lead in Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) election, barely ahead of four months, opposition congress held dialogue with it’s old partner, another tribal-based party, the Indigenous Nationalist Party of Twipra (INPT) to fight against BJP.
The Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee leaders said a six-member AICC delegation had held a meaningful discussion with INPT leaders on Tuesday night at a city-based hotel and initial coalition is fixed to capture ADC, which has been under CPI (M) now.
The BJP’s partner in the government IPFT has already warned the former to scrap alliance unless they would be given free hand and allowed to fight for at least 20 seats in the 28 members’ council.
Earlier in last Lok Sabha election, BJP and IPFT fought against each other keeping their partnership in the ruling formation intake. However, Congress sources said that not only INPT, they would go for forging alliance directly or indirectly with any party except BJP for upcoming ADC election.
The Congress-INPT meeting was headed by AICC member and former union minister Jairam Ramesh and PCC’s ad-hoc committee chairman Pijush Kanti Biswas.
On the other end, INPT was represented by it’s president Bijoy Kumar Hrangkhwal and general secretary Jagadish Debbarma.
According to report, Congress apparently accepted the proposal to give lion share of seat to INPT to contest and reportedly agreed to extend all other support. “We had preliminary talks on the ADC elections and heard the INPT leaders. If everything falls in right place, we will fight the ADC election jointly to take on the BJP-IPFT which has failed to keep its poll promises,” a PCC leader said.
Meanwhile, CPI (M) made it clear that they would not go for alliance with any other party and would go for electoral fight on its own strength. (UNI)
