Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Agartala: Former Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar claims the ruling alliance is silencing the opposition. He says workers from the BJP, IPFT, and Tipra Motha are targeting prospective CPI(M) candidates. They are showing up at homes to threaten and intimidate potential runners. The clock is ticking. Only two days remain for filing nominations.
Sarkar reports that the harassment has forced several candidates to quit the race. Thugs told these individuals their houses would burn or they would face eviction if they stayed on the ballot. Sarkar admitted the pressure is mounting. "In this situation, finding new candidates has become an important task," he said while pushing party workers to stay the course.
Sarkar also criticized the state’s current treatment of people with disabilities at a conference featuring former West Bengal minister Kanti Ganguly. He claimed the Left Front previously covered over 60 percent of disabled citizens with allowances regardless of their poverty status. He alleged the current administration scrapped support for those above the poverty line and stopped consistent payments to those below it.
The opposition leader accused the government of stripping away essential facilities and failing to provide basic concessions. He challenged his party to keep fighting despite the hostile environment. "The demands of persons with disabilities should be taken forward through a sustained movement," he stated. He wants a clear roadmap to secure those rights.
Updated at 7th September 2026 at 6:00pm
Political maneuvering hit a fever pitch this week as the BJP and Tipra Motha finished hammering out a seat-sharing deal to run as joint NDA partners in the September 28 elections. Following late-night negotiations that stretched into Monday morning, officials confirmed the alliance will contest all 4,597 seats together. Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath said the strategy was solidified after top leaders met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi.
The Left Front refused to sit on its hands while the ruling coalition coordinated its strategy. Party members marched through Agartala on Monday to protest the intimidation of their candidates. The opposition handed a formal memorandum to the District Magistrate, demanding state-guaranteed security throughout the nomination, scrutiny, and polling stages. They warned that if the administration fails to clear the path for a fair fight, they will ramp up their street-level agitation.
Updated at 7th September 2026 at 9:50pm
The alliance solidified its strategy during a marathon meeting at a hotel in Agartala that spanned from 7 p.m. Sunday until 3 a.m. Monday. Power Minister Ratan Lal Nath confirmed the parties reached a unanimous agreement to contest all 4,597 seats as part of the National Democratic Alliance. The decision follows a trip to Delhi where leaders met Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who reportedly promised the Tiprasa Accord would be fulfilled within the next month.
The Congress party fired back at the deal on September 7. Pradesh Congress president Ashish Kumar Saha accused Tipra Motha founder Pradyot Kishore Manikya Debbarma of using fabricated information to trick the tribal population. Saha claimed the alliance is a calculated move to divide anti-BJP votes ahead of the 2028 Assembly elections. He further alleged that the Tipra Motha leadership has traded regional development for personal political gain within the TTAADC.
Updated at 8th September 2026 at 5:51pm
Saha demanded clarity on the legal framework of the deal. He questioned how the government plans to enact the Tiprasa Accord once the election notification hits the books. He accused the Motha leadership of hiding the specific provisions of the agreement from the public to dodge accountability.
The Congress chief also pushed back against advice from Pradyot Debbarma. He stated that while the Congress welcomes input from neutral experts in fields like science, health, and national security, they have no interest in guidance from those he claims are tied to corruption or exploitation of state resources. He urged voters to reject what he called a politics of loot and division.
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