Agartala, Apr 17: The Pradyot Debbarma-led Tipra Motha Party (TMP) on Friday registered a landslide victory in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) polls, winning 20 of the 28 seats, according to the State Election Commission (SEC).
The second consecutive triumph for the party floated in 2020 by the former royal scion, with the demand for a ‘Greater Tipraland’, showed its dominance among the state’s tribal community.
The BJP won three seats, while counting in five constituencies is underway, according to the SEC.
The CPI(M) and Congress failed to win a single seat for the second straight time in the tribal council, which administers around 70 per cent of the state’s geographical area and is home to nearly 15 lakh people.
“Out of the results declared for 23 seats, the TMP won 20 while the BJP secured three. Counting in five seats is still underway,” said Bipul Barman, officer on special duty in the State Election Commission.
Debbarma said the victory has enhanced his party’s responsibility.
“Love has won over hate. I urge those who have won to work for the ‘dofa’ (community), the state and the country. Ordinary people do extraordinary work. I appeal to everyone that for our ‘dofa’ and the next generation, there should be no violence in our small state,” he said in a social media post.
The BJP and the Tipra Motha are allies, but the two parties fought the elections on their own.
Senior BJP leader and minister Ratan Lal Nath conceded defeat, saying, “I had said the scope was thin if electors voted under the influence of sentiment. BJP is the choice if people want to vote for development.
Polling for 28 seats of the tribal council was held on April 12 and recorded a voter turnout of 83.50 per cent, higher than the 81 per cent registered in the 2021 elections. A total of 173 candidates were in the fray.
In the 2021 TTAADC elections, the TMP had won 18 seats with a vote share of 46.70 per cent. The BJP, with 29.30 per cent of the votes, had won nine seats. (PTI)
