Agartala (Tripura) [India], June 26 (ANI): The Indigenous People's Front of Tripura, an ally of the BJP in the North-eastern state, will merge with a regional political party Tipra Motha on July 2 ahead of the State Assembly elections due next year, a senior IPFT leader said on Saturday.

Agartala Mar 31 PTI Voting for Tripuras lone Rajya Sabha seat is underway in the state assembly on Thursday amid strict adherence to COVID-19 protocols an Election Commission official saidAltogether 27 legislators have exercised their franchise till 1030 am Chief Electoral Officer Gitte Kirankumar Dinkarrao told PTIThe turnout is very good The polling has been going on smoothly without any trouble or technical snag It is scheduled to end at 4 pm and the counting of votes will take place later in the day after getting permission from the Election Commission of India ECI he saidState BJP president Dr Manik Saha who had joined the party in 2016 is in the fray while the CPIM has fielded former Tripura finance minister and sitting MLA Bhanu Lal Saha as its nominee for the electionMLAs in the 60-member Tripura assembly are participating in the Rajya Sabha election as members of the Upper House of Parliament are elected by legislators in state assemblies It is an election through proportional representationChief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb held a meeting with the BJP and IPFT MLAs in his residence on Wednesday nightBJP legislator Kalayani Roy issued a whip to its MLAs to avoid cross-voting in the electionThe Left Front currently has 15 MLAs in the Tripura assembly while the ruling BJP has a strength of 33 and its ally IPFT has eightBJP legislators Sudip Roy Barman and Asish Saha resigned from the assembly and gave up their memberships of the party in February They later joined the CongressTripura Speaker Ratan Chakraborty in January disqualified BJP MLA Ashish Das who has joined the Trinamool Congress while CPIM legislator Ramendra Chandra Debnath died recentlyThe tenure of incumbent Rajya Sabha MP from Tripura Jharna Das Baidya will expire on April 2 PTI PS BDC BDC

Agartala Mar 27 PTI The Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura IPFT an ally of the ruling BJP in the North-eastern state on Sunday said it would discuss the possibility of merging or allying with the Tripura Indigenous Progressive Regional Alliance TIPRA Motha before the assembly elections due early next yearThe TIPRA Motha headed by royal scion Pradyot Kishore Debbarma seeks a separate state for the indigenous people of TripuraOur conference to form a new executive committee will be held on April 2 and 3 There we would discuss whether the IPFT should merge or forge an alliance with TIPRA Motha as both parties demand a separate state IPFT spokesperson and assistant general secretary Mangal Debbarma told PTITIPRA Motha chief Pradyot Kishore Debbarma has several times called upon all tribal-based parties of the state to unite to fulfil the Greater Tipraland demandThe TIPRA Motha formed early last year swept the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council TTAADC elections held in April 2021 winning 18 of the 28 seats over the Greater Tipraland demand in a direct contest with the ruling BJP-IPFT allianceThe TTAADC comprises two-thirds of Tripuras territory and is home to the tribals who constitute a third of the states estimated 40 lakh populationThe IPFT spokesperson said when the popular royal scion has given a call for unity of tribal parties we want to give him a chance for fulfilling his demand for a separate state for indigenous people of the stateIn the 60-member Tripura Assembly the demand for a separate state may influence results in 20 seats where tribal people hold considerable swayGreater Tipraland is an extension of the IPFTs demand for Tipraland a separate state for tribals by carving out the TTAADC areaThe proposed Greater Tipraland state would include tribal majority areas of Tripura Assam Mizoram and even Chittagong Hill Tracts of BangladeshIt is a fact that a majority of our young generation support the separate statehood demand because of unequal development in hills and plains Even after 74 years of Independence the disparity continues to exist The younger generation wants social and economic development Tripura Tribal Welfare Minister and IPFT general secretary Mevar Kumar Jamatiya said in the Assembly on March 22Most of the states tribal population live in the hills while plain areas are inhabited by non-tribalsThe party wants the Centre to discuss its demand but has not received any response so far All major political parties in the state including the ruling BJP opposition CPIM and the Congress have rejected the demand calling it separatist and divisive PTI JOY NN NN

Agartala (Tripura) [India], December 25 (ANI): Former Tripura Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition Manik Sarkar on Friday launched a scathing attack on TIPRA motha, the ruling party of tribal district council areas. Sarkar felt that any attempt to create a divide among people is obviously is a part of the politics of both parties.

Agartala (Tripura) [India], November 8 (ANI): Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT), an ally of the BJP in the Tripura government has decided to participate in a joint mass agitation with opposition TIPRA Motha in New Delhi on November 14, demanding separate state 'Tipraland'.